With
signs of an outbreak of infectious gastroenteritis mainly caused by widespread
noroviruses, Japan's health ministry has been urging special precautions among
children and elderly people, who are more susceptible to severe symptoms.
The average number of confirmed infectious
gastroenteritis cases stood at 19.62 per medical institution for the week from
December 3 to 9, marking the season's highest figure, according to the National
Institute of Infectious Diseases, which receives reports from about 3,000
hospitals and clinics with paediatric departments nationwide.
The highest figure in the past decade was in
2006.
The virus spreading this winter is a mutant
strain of noroviruses that can easily bypass the immune system, the institute
said. The same strain is believed to be spreading around the world.
A 84-year-old male patient who was in a
hospital in Taketa, Oita Prefecture, as well as two other patients in their 80s
and 90s who were in a hospital in Sakyo Ward, Kyoto, died of the virus earlier
this month. There was also a mass outbreak of food poisoning involving more
than 1,000 people in Hiroshima.
While the epidemic has been more noticeable
in western Japan, mass infection also has been confirmed in some cities in
eastern Japan, such as in Shizuoka Prefecture, and Hokkaido.
News Desk
No comments:
Post a Comment