Passport Health logo
Vaccinations|Find a Travel Clinic|Advice
  • Home
    • About
        • Company History
        • Careers
        • Executive Team
        • Contact Us
        • Customer Feedback
        • FAQ
        • Mission Statement
        • Privacy Policy
        • Blog
    • Close
  • Destination Advice
    • Top Destinations
        • Brazil
        • China
        • Costa Rica
        • India
        • Kenya
        • Peru
        • Philippines
        • South Africa
        • Thailand
        • Vietnam
    • Destination Advice
        • Tips and recommendations for healthy travel to any destination:

          • Afghanistan
          • Albania
          • Algeria
          • American Samoa
          • Andorra
          • Angola
          • Anguilla
          • Antarctica
          • Antigua and Barbuda
          • Argentina
          • Armenia
          • Aruba
          • Australia
          • Austria
          • Azerbaijan
          • Azores
          • Bahamas
          • Bahrain
          • Balearics
          • Bangladesh
          • Barbados
          • Belarus
          • Belgium
          • Belize
          • Benin
          • Bhutan
          • Bolivia
          • Bonaire
          • Bora Bora
          • Bosnia
          • Botswana
          • Brazil
          • British Virgin Islands
          • Brunei
          • Bulgaria
          • Burkina Faso
          • Burma
          • Burundi
          • Cambodia
          • Cameroon
          • Canada
          • Canary Islands
          • Cape Verde
          • Cayman Islands
          • Central African Republic
          • Chad
          • Chile
          • China
          • Christmas Island
          • Cocos (Keeling) Islands
          • Colombia
          • Comoros
          • Cook Islands
          • Costa Rica
          • Cote d'Ivoire
          • Croatia
          • Cuba
          • Curacao
          • Cyprus
          • Czechia
          • Democratic Republic of the Congo
          • Denmark
          • Djibouti
          • Dominica
          • Dominican Republic
          • East Timor
          • Easter Island
          • Ecuador
          • Egypt
          • El Salvador
          • Equatorial Guinea
          • Eritrea
          • Estonia
          • Ethiopia
          • Falkland Islands
          • Faroe Islands
          • Fiji
          • Finland
          • France
          • French Guiana
          • French Polynesia
          • Gabon
          • Gambia
          • Georgia
          • Germany
          • Ghana
          • Gibraltar
          • Greece
          • Greenland
          • Grenada
          • Guadeloupe
          • Guam
          • Guatemala
          • Guinea-Bissau
          • Guinea
          • Guyana
          • Haiti
          • Hawaii
          • Honduras
          • Hong Kong
          • Hungary
          • Ibiza
          • Iceland
          • India
          • Indonesia
          • Iran
          • Iraq
          • Ireland
          • Israel
          • Italy
          • Jamaica
          • Japan
          • Jordan
          • Kazakhstan
          • Kenya
          • Kiribati
          • Kosovo
          • Kuwait
          • Kyrgyzstan
          • Laos
          • Latvia
          • Lebanon
          • Lesotho
          • Liberia
          • Libya
          • Liechtenstein
          • Lithuania
          • Luxembourg
          • Macau
          • Macedonia
          • Madagascar
          • Madeira Islands
          • Malawi
          • Malaysia
          • Maldives
          • Mali
          • Malta
          • Marshall Islands
          • Martinique
          • Mauritania
          • Mauritius
          • Mayotte
          • Mexico
          • Micronesia
          • Moldova
          • Monaco
          • Mongolia
          • Montenegro
          • Montserrat
          • Morocco
          • Mozambique
          • Namibia
          • Nauru
          • Nepal
          • Netherlands
          • New Caledonia
          • New Zealand
          • Nicaragua
          • Niger
          • Nigeria
          • Niue
          • Norfolk Island
          • North Korea
          • Northern Mariana Islands
          • Norway
          • Oman
          • Pakistan
          • Palau
          • Palestinian Territories
          • Panama
          • Papua New Guinea
          • Paraguay
          • Peru
          • Philippines
          • Pitcairn Islands
          • Poland
          • Portugal
          • Puerto Rico
          • Qatar
          • Republic of the Congo
          • RĂ©union
          • Romania
          • Russia
          • Rwanda
          • Saba
          • St. Barthelemy
          • Saint Helena
          • St. Kitts and Nevis
          • St. Lucia
          • Saint Martin
          • St. Pierre-et-Miquelon
          • St. Vincent and the Grenadines
          • Samoa
          • San Marino
          • Sao Tome and Principe
          • Saudi Arabia
          • Senegal
          • Serbia
          • Seychelles
          • Sierra Leone
          • Singapore
          • Sint Eustatius
          • Slovakia
          • Slovenia
          • Solomon Islands
          • Somalia
          • South Africa
          • South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
          • South Korea
          • South Sudan
          • Spain
          • Sri Lanka
          • Sudan
          • Suriname
          • Swaziland
          • Sweden
          • Switzerland
          • Syria
          • Tahiti
          • Taiwan
          • Tajikistan
          • Tanzania
          • Thailand
          • Togo
          • Tokelau
          • Tonga
          • Trinidad and Tobago
          • Tunisia
          • Turkey
          • Turkmenistan
          • Turks and Caicos Islands
          • Tuvalu
          • U.S. Virgin Islands
          • Uganda
          • Ukraine
          • United Arab Emirates
          • United Kingdom
          • United States
          • Uruguay
          • Uzbekistan
          • Vanuatu
          • Vatican
          • Venezuela
          • Vietnam
          • Wake Island
          • Western Sahara
          • Yemen
          • Zambia
          • Zimbabwe
    • Close
  • Travel Medicine
    • Travel Medical Services
        • Vaccines for Travel
        • Travel Health Consulting
        • Travellers’ Diarrhea Kits
        • Dengue Fever Prevention
        • Malaria Medication
        • Chikungunya Prevention
        • Zika Virus Prevention
        • Ebola Virus
        • Coronavirus
        • Travel Health Alerts
    • Additional Travel Services
      • Physician Referral Program
    • Close
  • Vaccinations
    • Overview
        • Chickenpox
        • Cholera (Dukoral)
        • Hepatitis A
        • Hepatitis B
        • Hep A/Typhoid Combo (Vivaxim)
        • Human Papillomavirus (HPV)
        • Japanese Encephalitis
        • Malaria Information
        • Measles – Mumps – Rubella (MMR)
        • Meningitis
        • Pneumonia
        • Polio
        • Rabies
        • Shingles
        • Tetanus-Diphtheria-Pertussis
        • Typhoid
        • Yellow Fever
        • Drug Identification Numbers (DIN)
    • Influenza (The Flu)
        • Learn more about your flu vaccine options
          • For most individuals
          • For seniors over 65 years
    • Routine Tests
      • TB Tests
      • Routine Vaccinations
        • Overview
    • Close
  • Employer Solutions
    • Overview
      • Travel Medicine & Vaccinations
      • Onsite Flu Clinics
      • Retirement Community Flu Program
      • Onsite Vaccination Clinics
      • Biometric Screenings
      • Vaccine Credentialing
    • Close
  • Locations
        • Ontario

          Barrie Travel Clinic

          Brampton Travel Clinic

          Carlington - Ottawa Travel Clinic

          Etobicoke Travel Clinic

          Kitchener Travel Clinic

          London Travel Clinic

          Markham Travel Clinic

          Mississauga Travel Clinic

          Oakville Travel Clinic

          Richmond Hill Travel Clinic

          St. Catharines Travel Clinic

          Toronto Travel Clinic

          Whitby Travel Clinic

          Yorkville Travel Clinic

        • Alberta

          Chinook - Calgary Travel Clinic

          Downtown Calgary Travel Clinic

          Downtown Edmonton Travel Clinic

        • British Columbia

          Burnaby Travel Clinic

          Downtown Vancouver Travel Clinic

          North Vancouver Travel Clinic

          Surrey Travel Clinic

        • Quebec

          Downtown Montreal Travel Clinic

          Laval Travel Clinic

          Québec City Travel Clinic

          Westmount Travel Clinic

    • Close

Measles Cases Spread Through Multiple Asian Countries

May 30, 2018 By Caitlin Hartwyk

A measles outbreak has spread from Japan to Taiwan and other Asian countries.

Measles is spreading throughout multiple Asian countries, causing over 150 reported cases of the illness. During the outbreak more than 3,500 people have been quarantined, with about 1,000 people monitored, according to Outbreak News Today and The Straits Times.

The main locations of the outbreak include Okinawa, Japan, and Taiwan. But, the disease is reaching other highly-populated regions. Numerous cases have also been noted in mainland China, Hong Kong and the rest of Japan.

Okinawa is currently the most affected area with almost 100 recorded patients. Thousands in Taiwan have been quarantined and many others are being watched closely.

Measles has a 10-day incubation period. This leads to symptoms including fever, cough, runny nose, conjunctivitis, rash and small white spots inside the mouth. An airborne virus, measles spreads through coughing or sneezing as it lives in the nose and throat mucus of those who are infected.

The 2018 event is said to have originated with a male 30-year-old Taiwanese Tigerair flight attendant. He was diagnosed with the illness in late March in Okinawa. Other than that, much is unclear, though case numbers have been slowly rising in the months since.

Tracing cases has led authorities to believe that measles came to China through a Tigerair flight. The source appears to be a 46-year-old expatriate who traveled by air to Hong Kong after a month-long visit to Thailand. According to The South China Morning Post, the first patient in the outbreak had also taken a trip to Thailand before diagnosis in Japan.

Eliminated long ago in the United States, measles may not seem like a serious illness. But, the viral infection is one of the leading causes of death among young children and is highly contagious.

The outbreak could cause tremendous ramifications in Japan after a recent success with the virus. The WHO declared measles eliminated in the country in 2015.

According to Japan Times, the government plans to prevent further spread from hospitals and nursery schools. Workers at the facilities will get both measles vaccinations to help stop the spread of illness. Such institutions have also been advised to check their staff medical records.

The epidemic could also hurt the economy amidst a busy travel season.

Besides the risk of complication, measles could bring a drop in tourism rates. Resort hotels had already received over 170 cancellations 10 days before the celebratory Golden Week, which started at the very end of April. Along with Cherry Blossom week a month prior, Golden Week is one of Japan’s busiest periods for travelers. The Japanese government encouraged all travelers to get immunizations before coming.

If you plan to travel to Asia and wish to get the MMR vaccine, contact your local Passport Health clinic for assistance.

Do you know anyone affected by the measles outbreak throughout Asia? Were you aware of the many possible cases or people put under quarantine? Let us know in the comments below, or via Facebook and Twitter.

Written for Passport Health by Katherine Meikle. Katherine is a freelance writer and proud first-generation British-American living in Florida, where she was born and raised. She has a passion for travel and a love of writing, which go hand-in-hand.

Filed Under: General Posts

About Us

Passport Health's blog provides travelers and travel enthusiasts with a variety of news and features. We focus on bringing the most interesting and relevant stories right to our readers. Topics range from the vaccines needed for a destination to updates on recent outbreaks, travel advice and much more. Feel free to check out some of our most popular posts, linked in the sidebar, or our most recent posts below
Stay Updated! Sign up to receive email updates from our blog.

Recent Blog Posts

  • How Does Measles Spread? A New Study Gives Answers
  • The Necessary and Unfortunate Identity of “Patient Zero”
  • What Was The Plague of Justinian? How A Single Outbreak Killed 10% Of The World’s Population.
  • Tips To Stay Safe While Traveling Alone

Blog Archives

  • About Us
  • Clinical Trials
  • Contact Us
  • PIPEDA Policy and Consent Form
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Sitemap
Schedule Your Appointment:
Questions? Please call or E-mail Us

Connect With Us:

Passport Health Canada on Facebook
Passport Health on Twitter
Passport Health on YouTube
Passport Health on Instagram
Passport Health on Linked In
Passport Health Feed

Passport Health is an Outlier business Passport Health es una empresa que pertenece al grupo OutlierPassport Health est une entreprise du groupe Outlier Copyright © 2021

This website or its third-party tools use cookies to improve functionality and performance. By continuing to browse this site, you are consenting to the use of cookies illustrated in our cookie policy.Accept