Taiwan health authorities on Saturday warned islanders to guard against dengue fever as the number of Taiwan dengue fever cases reached 76. As of Saturday, Taiwan's local dengue fever cases had risen to 17 and imported dengue fever cases had hit 59, pushing the total number of dengue fever cases to 76, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) said. "Imported cases are Taiwanese who were infected while travelling in Southeast Asian countries," CDC said in a statement. CDC disinfected the homes and surroundings of the 76 dengue fever cases, and urged all Taiwan residents to clean up their neighbourhoods to prevent mosquitos from breeding. Dengue fever, characterized by severe joint pains and a rash, is endemic in more than 100 countries and has become a major international health concern. Haemorrhagic dengue fever causes internal breeding and is fatal. There is no known cure for the disease which is caused by aedes mosquitos and occurs mainly in sub-tropical countries. In 2002, more than 5,000 Taiwanese were infected with dengue fever and several of them died.
