Taiwan reports 1st imported Lyme disease case of 2026

Taipei, April 7 (CNA) Taiwan on Tuesday reported its first imported case of Lyme disease this year, involving a woman in her 60s who was infected in Sweden, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said.

The patient, a Taiwanese national from northern Taiwan, had been living in Sweden since 2024 and engaged in forest activities where she was bitten by insects, CDC epidemiologist Lin Yung-ching (林詠青) said at a regular press briefing.

She developed symptoms including a red, itchy rash on March 10 and was diagnosed with Lyme disease at a local hospital in Sweden, where she received antibiotic treatment, Lin said.

After returning to Taiwan on March 17, she sought medical attention again on March 18 and March 25 due to persistent symptoms. The infection was later confirmed through testing, with Sweden identified as the place of exposure.

Lin said Lyme disease is not endemic in Taiwan, and all previously recorded cases have been imported.

The disease is transmitted through bites from infected ticks and does not spread from person to person, typically affecting those engaged in outdoor activities.

Early symptoms may resemble the flu, while many patients develop a characteristic expanding rash. If left untreated, complications can emerge weeks or months later, affecting the joints, heart or nervous system.

Taiwan has recorded 21 confirmed cases since Lyme disease was classified as a Category IV notifiable infectious disease in 2007, all of them imported, most from the United States, the CDC said.

In Taiwan, Category IV notifiable diseases are those that must be reported to health authorities but generally pose a lower public health risk and are less likely to spread rapidly.