Taipei: Over 180,000 outpatient and emergency visits due to influenza-like illness were recorded last week in Taiwan, the highest number for the same period over the past 10 flu seasons, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said Tuesday.

According to Focus Taiwan, a total of 181,995 influenza-like illness-related outpatient and emergency visits were reported from Feb. 2 to Feb. 8 across Taiwan. This marks the highest number recorded for the same period since the 2015-2016 flu season, as stated by CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Kuo Hung-wei during a regular news briefing.

Kuo further explained that the number of influenza cases with severe complications has been increasing, with 128 severe cases and 28 flu-related deaths recorded from Feb. 4 to Monday. Most of these cases were linked to H1N1 infections. Among the fatalities was a boy under 10 years old in southern Taiwan, marking the youngest flu-related death recorded in the current flu season. CDC physician Lin Yung-ching noted that the boy, who had a history of asthma and had not been vaccinated for the current flu season, succumbed to influenza A. The primary cause of his death was identified as influenza-related acute necrotizing encephalopathy.

Regarding the trajectory of the flu epidemic, CDC Deputy Director-General Tseng Shu-huai indicated that it could start to decline as early as next week or the week after. However, events such as the Lantern Festival, students returning to school after the Lunar New Year holiday, and colder temperatures could cause fluctuations in the epidemic.

In terms of flu vaccines, Tseng mentioned that 13,000 doses of government-funded flu vaccines remain available across Taiwan as of Tuesday. He urged high-risk groups to get vaccinated as soon as possible.

In another health-related development, the CDC reported the first domestic typhoid fever case of 2025. This involved a teenage boy who developed symptoms such as muscle pain and recurrent fever after dining at a fishing port in northern Taiwan. The symptoms began on Jan. 27, and the boy, who has been hospitalized for 10 days as of Tuesday, tested positive for the bacterium Salmonella Typhi in his blood on Feb. 5. It is believed that he contracted the infection from consuming contaminated seafood.

The CDC explained that typhoid fever, an intestinal infectious disease, has an incubation period of approximately 8 to 14 days. It is primarily transmitted through the consumption of food or water contaminated with the feces or urine of an infected person. Lin emphasized the importance of maintaining proper food and hand hygiene, ensuring that food is fully cooked and consumed hot, and boiling or steaming shellfish for at least 10 minutes before eating.