Taiwan reports new case of severe enterovirus in 4-day-old infant

Taipei, Oct. 28 (CNA) Taiwan has reported a new severe enterovirus case involving a 4-day-old infant girl infected with Coxsackievirus A16, the country's Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said Tuesday.

The infant, born prematurely in early October and initially kept in a nursery for observation, developed a rapid heartbeat and fever on the fourth day after birth, CDC physician Lin Yung-ching (林詠青) said at a routine news briefing in Taipei.

Blood tests indicated rising inflammation, raising concerns of a severe enterovirus infection, and she was immediately transferred to intensive care, Lin said, adding that laboratory tests later confirmed Coxsackievirus A16.

Lin said the newborn experienced encephalitis-related apnea and low oxygen levels during hospitalization, but her condition improved with treatment and she was discharged earlier Tuesday after having spent about three weeks in the hospital.

Some family members in the same household contracted enterovirus in late September, making it the likely source of the infant's infection, the CDC physician said.

From Oct. 19-25, a total of 8,478 enterovirus visits were recorded, a 5.7 percent increase from the previous week's cases, deputy director of the CDC's Epidemic Intelligence Center Lee Chia-lin (李佳琳) said.

Laboratory monitoring over the past four weeks showed that Coxsackievirus A16 remains the predominant strain circulating in the community, followed by Coxsackievirus A6 and Echovirus 11, Lee added.

A total of 18 severe enterovirus cases have been confirmed so far this year, including eight deaths, with 16 of them caused by Echovirus 11 and one each by Coxsackievirus A6 and Coxsackievirus B5, she said.

The CDC noted that newborns infected with enterovirus may develop fever or low body temperature, lethargy, or reduced feeding, adding that the illness can progress rapidly.

It warned that children under the age of five are at high risk of severe enterovirus, and therefore parents should watch for warning signs including drowsiness, lethargy, limb weakness, muscle twitching, persistent vomiting, rapid breathing, or a fast heartbeat.