2019 Volume 34 Issue 1 Pages 21-27
In recent years, according to the development of the transportation network and changes in the social environment, emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases have become a major threat that will be easily introduced into our country at any time. Even if the index case returned from abroad was infected with a contagious and serious emerging and re-emerging infectious disease, the initial signs and symptoms are usually fever or respiratory condition in most cases, which are the same as that of common diseases within Japan. Therefore, we often pay no attention to such patients, they easily pass through the triage system of medical facilities and sometimes become a trigger of hospital-acquired infection or spread out in the community.
'Suspect and remind these diseases' is always a key point to make a correct diagnosis, detailed medical history including a travel history and reliable test results of specimen with appropriate sampling would strongly support it. In addition, the healthcare workers required adequate vaccination and personal protective equipment on daily basis to avoid themselves from infection, and also to provide an infectious control measures with specifying a source and a route of infection, after confirming the diagnosis of these unique diseases.
We need to learn by experience of several outbreaks such as measles, MERS and influenza A (H7N9), for developing 'Best practices' to control the hospital-acquired infection caused by imported infectious diseases.
