Taiwan News
Date: 2015-09-30
By: Ko Lin, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

Containing the spread of dengue fever is especially vital during post typhoons, the Centers

for Disease Control Director-General Chuang Jen-hsiang said Wednesday.

“Authorities in both Kaohsiung and Tainan are working around the clock to prevent the dengue fever epidemic from worsening than it already is,” he said.

According to Su Ih-jen of the National Health Research Institutes, the number of nationwide dengue fever contracts since the beginning of summer is expected to rise to over 50,000 from the originally anticipated 35,000 as a result of Typhoon Dujuan.

“The next two weeks will be critical in determining if the epidemic has worsened,” Su observed.     [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/09/30
By: Lung Pei-ning and Lee Hsin-Yin

Taipei, Sept. 30 (CNA) The number of dengue fever infections reported in Taiwan since

May when the dengue fever started has reached 18,365, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said Wednesday.

The latest figure represents an increase of 406 cases from the previous day, the CDC said.

As of Tuesday, 15,793 cases had been reported in the southern municipality of Tainan and 2,266 in neighboring Kaohsiung, according to CDC figures.

In Tainan alone, the number of infections increased by 297 from the previous day, a slightly lower number than the daily increases seen in the previous few days.     [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/09/29
By Lung Pei-ning and Y.F. Low

Taipei, Sept. 29 (CNA) The number of dengue fever infections reported in Taiwan since

May when the dengue fever started has reached 17,959, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said Tuesday.

The latest figure represents an increase of 534 cases from the previous day, the CDC said.

As of Monday, 15,496 cases had been reported in the southern municipality of Tainan and 2,167 in neighboring Kaohsiung, according to CDC figures.

In Tainan alone, the number of infections increased by 441 from the previous day.

The CDC said the week after a typhoon is a crucial period for the prevention and control of dengue fever, and it urged people to clean up the environment to prevent infestation by mosquito larvae.     [FULL  STORY]

Want China Times
Date: 2015-09-27
By: CNA and Staff Reporter

A girl from Myanmar with extensive hemangioma of the tongue returned home Friday after

undergoing surgery and rehabilitation that has greatly improved her condition.

“I want to thank all the good friends I made in Taiwan,” said Pu Shuang-ting, a seven-year-old of Chinese descent who lives in a mountainous area of northern Myanmar, said before her departure.

Pu has a swollen tongue that keeps growing and cannot be withdrawn into the mouth, affecting her speech and ability to eat. Because her tongue was three times normal size, she constantly bit her tongue and caused it to bleed.

Pu and her mother and aunt were brought to Taiwan in May by Taiwan Root Medical Peace Corps, a private non-profit organization, which encountered the girl’s condition during a trip to Myanmar last year.

Lee Hsiao-ping, her attending surgeon at Taipei’s Tri-Service General Hospital, carefully assessed her condition before performing surgery so that her tongue would not pressure her respiratory tract and endanger her life.     [FULL  STORY]

Straits Times
Date: Sep 25, 2015

TAIPEI • Taiwan is facing its deadliest outbreak of dengue fever with a record high of 42

deaths – double the number that died last year, the authorities warned.

Last year saw 15,732 cases – by far the highest in nearly three decades – with this year shaping up to overtake it.

The total number of cases for this year has already hit 15,282, the Centres for Disease Control (CDC) said yesterday, with the majority in southern Tainan City.

Unusually hot weather has caused the increase, it said.

High temperatures and humidity encourage breeding of mosquitoes, which is why countries with tropical climates – including Taiwan – tend to be plagued by dengue fever every year.

“This year saw temperatures in Tainan and (the southern region of) Kaohsiung at their highest in 30 years,” Mr Chuang Jen-hsiang, CDC’s deputy director said.     [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan suffers deadliest ever dengue outbreak

Yahoo News
Date: Sep 24, 2015
By: AFP

Taipei (AFP) – Taiwan is suffering its deadliest ever outbreak of mosquito-borne dengue fever with a record high of 42 deaths, authorities said Thursday, double the number that died in 2014.

Last year saw 15,732 cases — by far the highest in nearly three decades — with this year shaping up to overtake.

The total number of cases for 2015 has already hit 15,282, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) said, the majority of them in southern Tainan City.

Unusually hot weather has caused the increase, the CDC said.

High temperatures and humidity encourage breeding of mosquitos, which is why countries with tropical climates — including Taiwan — tend to be plagued by dengue fever every year.

“This year saw temperatures in Tainan and (the southern region of) Kaohsiung at their highest in 30 years,” Chuang Jen-hsiang, CDC’s deputy director, told AFP.     [FULL  STORY]

Taiwan News
Date: 2015-09-23
By: Ko Lin, Taiwan News, Staff Writer

The Association of Obstetrics and Gynecology revealed that 16 percent of fresh college

students claimed to have had sex before, as compared to 10-14 percent in 2000, reports said Wednesday.

The survey also showed that 10 percent of those polled claimed to have had unprotected sex.

As part of the effort to promote safe sex awareness during the World Contraception Day on September 26, the association conducted a nationwide poll on 731 male and 416 female students within the 18-21 age group.

The survey also showed that the majority of the island’s young populace is still unaware of the correlation between unprotected sex and sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), and more importantly, HIV.     [FULL  STORY]

Focus Taiwan
Date: 2015/09/23
By: Lee Hsin-Yin

Taipei, Sept. 23 (CNA) The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said Wednesday that 42

people have died of dengue fever since May 1, which has already surpassed the level for the whole of last year, when 28 people died.

The figures represent a 14-year-high, the CDC said, adding that it is still examining 29 suspected cases.

Nationwide, the number of dengue fever cases this summer had increased to 14,590 as of Tuesday, with 98.4 percent occurring in southern Taiwan’s Tainan and Kaohsiung, the CDC said.

The nationwide figure represents an increase of 719 cases from the previous day, the CDC said.     [FULL  STORY]