An imported case of malaria involving a Nigerian national was confirmed by Taiwan’s Centers for Disease Control on September 18, making it the sixth case this year.
The Nigerian, whose name and age were not known, is a first-year student at a university in Tainan. On September 14, he entered Taiwan for the first time, China Times reported on Tuesday.
The following day, the student showed symptoms of malaria including fever, which prompted him to seek medical attention from a hospital on September 17.
The Centers for Disease Control confirmed it was an imported case of malaria after an investigation by the Public Health Bureau of the Tainan City Government, which showed that the student had symptoms of malaria and was on medication prior to his arrival in Taiwan.
The student was reportedly in stable condition and no parasites of the genus Plasmodium, which can cause malaria, appeared in his blood in two laboratory tests.
The Tainan City Government conducted inspections around the university campus and no signs of female mosquitoes of the genus Anopheles, which can transmit malaria, were noted, and anti-mosquito efforts including sterilization of the dormitory were conducted. Mosquito nets were also given to dormitory residents.
According to government statistics, malaria was eliminated from Taiwan in 1965, but mosquito species that could transmit malaria are still prevalent throughout the island.
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