The Centers for Disease Control (hereafter referred to as the CDC) announced today (the 21st) that the season for enterovirus outbreaks has arrived, urging parents and caregivers of infants and young children to strengthen personal and environmental hygiene, because adults infected with enterovirus usually have no obvious symptoms and can easily transmit it to infants at home due to lack of protection. The public is asked to change clothes when returning home after going out, and before holding or feeding infants, to properly wash hands with soap, pay attention to environmental disinfection, and implement frequent hand washing and staying at home when ill, to reduce the chance of enterovirus transmission.
According to CDC monitoring data, the domestic outbreak has risen recently. In the 15th week (April 12–18), there were 3,526 outpatient and emergency visits for enterovirus, a 16.5% increase from the previous week (3,027 visits). Laboratory monitoring over the past four weeks shows that the community enterovirus is predominantly Coxsackie A6, followed by Coxsackie A4 and Coxsackie A16. This year, a total of four confirmed severe cases of enterovirus infection have been recorded: two cases of enterovirus D68, and one case each of Coxsackie A4 and Coxsackie A16, which is comparable to the same period last year (2025) (four cases) and higher than the same period from 2022 to 2024 (0–3 cases). The public is urged to pay special attention to the health of infants and young children; if children are infected with enterovirus, watch for signs of severe disease and ensure they stay home from school to avoid cross‑infection through contact with other children. Neighboring country Vietnam is experiencing a severe outbreak, with over 26,000 cumulative cases by mid‑April this year, mainly EV71, especially in southern provinces such as Ho Chi Minh City, where severe and fatal cases continue to appear, and the epidemic is expected to keep rising. Although China's outbreak has declined, it remains higher than the same period in the past two years. Hong Kong, Japan, Thailand, and Singapore are currently at low levels.
The CDC reminds that enterovirus carriers are most contagious within the first week after symptom onset. If school‑age children at home are infected, they should rest at home and avoid contact with other school‑age children to reduce cross‑infection. Moreover, some patients only exhibit mild cold‑like symptoms that are hard to detect and prevent, so after recovery parents and childcare institutions should continue to monitor infants’ health and maintain personal hand hygiene by following the five steps of hand washing: “wet, lather, rinse, cup, dry,” to avoid transmitting the virus to others. It should also be noted that alcohol has limited virucidal effect on enterovirus; regular disinfection can use chlorine bleach solution at 500 ppm (10 L water + 100 mL chlorine bleach) for general environmental cleaning to lower transmission risk.
The CDC calls for attention to children under five, who are a high‑risk group for severe enterovirus infection. If a physician diagnoses an enterovirus infection, monitor the child's health for signs such as drowsiness, confusion, lethargy, weakness or paralysis of limbs, muscle jerks (unexplained startle or sudden whole‑body muscle contraction), persistent vomiting, rapid breathing, or accelerated heartbeat—possible precursors of severe disease—and promptly take them to a major hospital for treatment. Related information can be found on the CDC’s global website (https://www.cdc.gov.tw), or call the toll‑free epidemic prevention line 1922 (or 0800-001922) for inquiries.
Source: Centers for Disease Control
Data compiled: Sensory Management Office
