Epidemic and Emerging Disease Alerts in the Pacific
As of January 16, 2024, the Pacific region has been experiencing various epidemic and emerging disease alerts, with updates on the situation provided by different sources. Here are the highlights and updates since the last map was sent on PacNet on January 10, 2024:
Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)
The evolving nature of COVID-19 testing, vaccination, and reporting strategies across the Pacific region has led to data that might not fully reflect the true situation in several countries. In French Polynesia, there has been a decrease in reported COVID-19 cases and positivity rates, although hospitalizations have increased. The JN.1 variant is the dominant variant in circulation, while the EG.5.1 variant accounts for 8%. A blue alert is being maintained in the region.
Dengue
In Tokelau, a total of 57 suspected cases of dengue have been reported, with no travel history associated with any of the cases. The situation report was last published on December 18, 2023.
Diarrhoea
Fiji has reported a diarrhoeal outbreak in the Balevuto medical area, with cases confirmed and admitted to the hospital. Meanwhile, in FSM, Yap State, a total of 4 diarrhoeal cases have been reported, leading to a change in the alert status from red to blue.
Influenza A & B
In the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), the number of Influenza-Like Illness (ILI) cases remained constant, with a decrease over 3 consecutive weeks, resulting in the removal of the blue alert from the map. In French Polynesia, 15 new cases were confirmed in Week 1.
These updates provide crucial information for monitoring and responding to epidemic and emerging diseases in the Pacific region, emphasizing the importance of ongoing surveillance and response efforts.
