Update on chikungunya fever
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health announced that as of 5pm today (October 27), the CHP has recorded three new cases of chikungunya fever (CF). The CHP continued to implement various prevention and control measures together with various Government departments and relevant organisations, striving to prevent CF from taking root locally and minimise the public health impact of the disease in Hong Kong.
Latest cases information
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The first case involves a 55-year-old female living in Wong Tai Sin. Following the first local case yesterday (October 26), the CHP conducted active case finding and noted that she is a staff of a school at Fung Tak Estate. A preliminary investigation revealed that she visited Shanwei in Guangdong between October 11 and 12. Several days after returning to Hong Kong, she visited Shenzhen in Guangdong alone on October 19. She developed a fever, rash and joint pain on October 24. She sought medical attention at the Accident and Emergency Department of Kwong Wah Hospital yesterday evening. The CHP immediately arranged the patient for testing upon receiving notification. Her travel companions to Shanwei and three household contacts are currently asymptomatic and under medical surveillance. Since the patient stayed at two affected places (including Shenzhen and the vicinity of Fung Tak Estate), her source of infection has yet to be confirmed. The CHP will carry out genome analysis to ascertain whether it has epidemiological linkage with the confirmed local case yesterday. Investigation is ongoing.
The second case involves a 67-year-old male living in Tung Chung. A preliminary investigation revealed that he visited Foshan in Guangdong alone between September 29 and October 24. He developed a fever and joint pain on October 23. He sought medical attention at the Accident and Emergency Department of North Lantau Hospital the following day upon returning Hong Kong. He has three household contacts who are currently asymptomatic and under medical surveillance.
The third case involves a 76-year-old female living in Tseung Kwan O. A preliminary investigation revealed that she visited Guangzhou and Huizhou in Guangdong alone between October 17 and 26. She developed a fever and joint pain on October 22 and sought medical attention at a hospital in Guangdong. She returned to Hong Kong on October 26 and sought medical attention at the Accident and Emergency Department of Tseung Kwan O Hospital. She has two household contacts who are currently asymptomatic and under medical surveillance.
All three patients were admitted to the hospitals for treatment in a mosquito-free environment and are in stable condition. Their blood samples tested positive for the chikungunya virus upon laboratory testing. Since the abovementioned 67-year-old male and 76-year-old female stayed in Guangdong Province during their incubation period, the CHP considered that they were infected during travel. The cases were classified as imported. The CHP's epidemiological investigations are ongoing, and it has reported the cases to the health authority of Guangdong Province.
Government's comprehensive actions on prevention and control of CF
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The CHP is implementing prevention and control measures according to epidemiological investigations and risk assessment, including providing medical surveillance and health advice to household contacts of the case or those with common exposure to the source of infection. If they present with relevant symptoms, the CHP will arrange for laboratory testing. The CHP officers and District Services & Community Care Teams (Care Teams) have distributed questionnaires and promotional leaflets to about 8 000 households in the district, and will continue to contact the residents, disseminate information, and understand and follow up their health conditions. The CHP has also issued letters to doctors, hospitals, schools and institutions, providing the latest information on CF and remaining them to be vigilant.
The CHP and Wong Tai Sin District Office (WTSDO) organised a public health talk at the at Fung Tak Estate Community Centre at 8pm tonight to enhance public understanding of this mosquito-borne disease and encourage active participation in prevention efforts to protect both oneself and others. Besides, the online seminar held by the CHP last night attracted over 4 100 total views.
In addition, the CHP has set up an inquiry hotline (2125 2373) and a health consultation booth at 2/F, Fung Tak Shopping Centre from yesterday, where assessments have been provided to residents with relevant symptoms. As at 5pm today, the CHP has conducted assessment for about 1 300 residents, with seven individuals presenting relevant symptoms received blood tests. While awaiting laboratory results, they will follow the CHP's advice to use DEET-containing insect repellents or other effective active ingredients for effective prevention of mosquito bites. The hotline and health consultation booth will continue to operate from 9am to 8pm daily.
The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) and relevant departments have comprehensively enhanced the mosquito control operations in Hong Kong since July this year. In fact, overall mosquito infestation indices this year are lower than that of the previous years. The mosquito infestation index in September was 2.5 per cent, which decreased significantly from 9.5 per cent in June. The index available for October also remains at a low level. Regarding the investigation area of the local case, the latestarea gravidtrap index (AGI) in October was 1.7 per cent, while the AGI in September was 0.9 per cent, indicating the distribution of Aedes albopictus mosquitoes was not extensive. Among which, the FEHD has conducted vector investigations and targeted mosquito control operations against the imported cases. In light of the local case, the FEHD has immediately conducted follow-up actions, these measures include:
- carrying out intensive fogging in scrubby areas within a 250-metre radius of the relevant locations to kill adult mosquitoes;
- carrying out inspections of the locations, removing stagnant water, applying insecticides and disposing of abandoned water containers every week with a view to preventing mosquito breeding; and
- enhancing public education efforts through organising health talks, setting up mobile education stations, and distributing publicity leaflets.
The abovementioned measures will be continued. Furthermore, the Government will further enhance the mosquito control efforts in addition to the existing measures. The Environment and Ecology Bureau held Steering Committee meeting this afternoon to lead relevant departments to step up mosquito prevention and elimination measures; the district offices of the FEHD will hold interdepartmental meetings at district level to undergo risk assessment and conduct targeted measures.
Latest surveillance data
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Since the beginning of 2025, and as of September 30, a total of 445 271 suspected and confirmed CF cases and 155 CF-related deaths have been reported in 40 countries/territories. Cases have been reported in the Americas, Africa, Asia, and Europe. CF outbreaks currently occur in many countries worldwide. Members of the public should check the situation of the destinations before travelling abroad.
According to information from the Guangdong Provincial Disease Control and Prevention Administration, there were 868 new CF cases in Guangdong last week (October 19 to 25), showing a decrease compared to the previous week (October 12 to 18), which reported 2 086 cases. Most of the cases (199 cases) were recorded in Jiangmen last week, followed by Foshan (130 cases), Guangzhou (124 cases) and Shenzhen (102 cases). All cases were mild, with no severe or fatal cases reported.
Preventive measures taken by the public
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Severe symptoms and deaths caused by CF are extremely rare, with a mortality rate of less than one in 1 000. The occurrence of severe complications is mostly related to the patients' underlying health conditions. Elderly persons (particularly those aged 65 or above), young children (particularly infants under 1 year old), pregnant women and persons with chronic illnesses (such as hypertension, diabetes or heart disease) are at higher risk of developing complications after contracting CF and may require a longer recovery period. Therefore, members of the public (especially the abovementioned high-risk groups) are advised to seek medical advice promptly if they develop relevant symptoms, particularly a fever, sudden severe joint pain and skin rash, after visiting areas affected by CF.
Members of the public should use DEET-containing insect repellents or other effective active ingredients properly to prevent mosquito bites, but the following precautions should be taken when using them:
- read the label instructions carefully first;
- apply right before entering an area with a risk of mosquito bites;
- apply on exposed skin and clothing;
- use DEET of up to 30 per cent for pregnant women and up to 10 per cent for children (For children who travel to countries or areas where mosquito-borne diseases are endemic or epidemic and where exposure is likely, those aged 2 months or above can use DEET-containing insect repellents with a DEET concentration of up to 30 per cent);
- apply sunscreen first, then insect repellent;
- reapply only when needed and follow the instructions; and
- in addition to DEET, there are other insect repellents available on the market containing different active ingredients, such as IR3535 and picaridin. When using any insect repellent, the public should follow the usage instructions and precautions on the product label.
The FEHD also appeals to members of the public to continue to stay alert and work together to carry out mosquito prevention and control measures early, including inspecting their homes and surroundings to remove potential breeding grounds, changing water in vases and scrubbing their inner surfaces, removing water in saucers under potted plants at least once a week, and properly disposing of containers such as soft drink cans and lunch boxes. The FEHD also advises members of the public and property management agencies to keep drains free of blockage and level all defective ground surfaces to prevent the accumulation of water. They should also scrub all drains and surface sewers with an alkaline detergent at least once a week to remove any mosquito eggs.
To strengthen support for ethnic minority communities, essential information on CF has also been translated into 10 ethnic minority languages (namely Hindi, Nepali, Urdu, Thai, Bahasa Indonesia, Tagalog, Vietnamese, Punjabi, Sinhala and Bengali) and uploaded to the CHPwebsite.
The public should call1823in case of mosquito problems, and may visit the following pages for more information: the CF page of theCHPand theTravel Health Service, the latestTravel Health News,tips for using insect repellents, and the CHPFacebook Page,Instagram AccountandYouTube Channel, and also theMosquito Prevention and Control dedicated pageof the FEHD.
Update on chikungunya fever Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
Update on chikungunya fever Source: HKSAR Government Press Releases
