Half of 49 flu cases infected in Thailand

Three of the newly identified patients were found to have been infected while traveling in Thailand, while the other two caught the virus in the United States, said Shih Wen-yi, spokesman for the CECC and a senior official at the Center for Disease Control (CDC).

Shih said 48 of Taiwan's 49 A(H1N1) virus infections have been imported, with 25 or half coming from Thailand and 17 from the United States.

The center advised that people refrain from traveling to areas affected by A(H1N1) flu.

To those who insist on traveling to those destinations, CECC experts suggested that they read local reports on the swine flu outbreak and closely follow the related instructions of local health authorities.

If a high temperature or fever is noticed, people should immediately seek medical help and tell doctors about destinations of overseas travels. They should also stay away from places with huge crowds and reduce contact with others, the center said.

Shih said the center has no plan to impose strict travel bans to certain places even if there are community outbreaks there, because the new flu only has a limited impact on the human body.

There is no need for people who have already booked overseas trips to certain areas unless there is a significant surge in fatality rate, he said.

Yet travel agencies said bookings for travels to Thailand, a popular destination for Taiwan tourists, have dropped 20 to 30 percent.

They suggested that customers remain calm because the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has kept the warning for travel to Thailand at the yellow-color level.

Data from the World Health Organization shows that as of June 12, 74 countries had officially reported 29,669 cases of influenza A(H1N1), including 145 deaths.

Subscribe to The China Post and save 25%. Click here

PrintEmail

Write a Comment

Terms

Enter your comments - 3000 characters max

Type in image code

Submit

 Receive China Post promos
 Respond to this email