Focus Taiwan
Date: 2019/11/09
By: Chen Wei-ting and Chiang Yi-ching

Taipei, Nov. 9 (CNA) Taiwan's Centers for Disease Control (CDC) issued a call Friday for the public to observe good hygiene, particularly at this time, which it said is a peak season for norovirus.

Norovirus illnesses, caused by a highly contagious virus that produces symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and stomach cramps, typically peak between November and March in Taiwan, according to the CDC.

Over the past four weeks, 24 cluster infections of diarrhea caused by norovirus have been confirmed in Taiwan, the CDC said, adding that there had been a total of 55 cluster cases of diarrhea during that period.

The virus is transmitted mainly via the fecal-oral route, and outbreaks often occur in densely populated institutions such as schools, which means good hygiene is key to preventing the spread of the disease, CDC Deputy Director-General Philip Lo (羅一鈞) told CNA.    [FULL  STORY]