DH announced latest situation of Legionnaires' Disease cases
The Centre for Health Protection (CHP) of the Department of Health today (December 16) reported the latest number of cases of Legionnaires' disease (LD), and reminded the public of the importance of using and maintaining properly designed man-made water systems, adding that susceptible groups should strictly observe relevant precautions.
From December 8 to 14, the CHP recorded the following two community-acquired LD cases:
A 60-year-old male patient with underlying illnesses living in Sha Tin District; and
A 79-year-old female patient with underlying illnesses living in North District.
"Epidemiological investigations are ongoing to identify potential sources of infection, high-risk exposure and clusters, if any," a spokesman for the CHP said.
As of December 14, 133 LD cases had been recorded this year. In 2023 and 2022, there were 121 and 80 cases respectively.
"Men, people aged over 50, smokers, alcoholics and persons with weakened immunity are more susceptible to LD. Some situations may also increase the risk of infection, including poor maintenance of water systems; living in areas with old water systems, cooling towers or fountains; using electric water heaters, whirlpools and spas or hot water spring spas; and recent stays in hotels or vessels," the spokesman said.
Legionellae are found in various environmental settings and grow well in warm water (20 to 45 degrees Celsius). They can be found in aqueous environments such as water tanks, hot and cold water systems, cooling towers, whirlpools and spas, water fountains and home apparatus that support breathing. People may become infected when they breathe in contaminated droplets (aerosols) and mist generated by artificial water systems, or when handling garden soil, compost and potting mixes.
Immunocompromised persons should:
Use sterile or boiled water for drinking, tooth brushing and mouth rinsing;
Avoid using humidifiers, or other mist- or aerosol-generating devices; and
If using humidifiers, or other mist- or aerosol-generating devices, fill the water tank with only sterile or cooled freshly boiled water, and not water directly from the tap. Also, clean and maintain humidifiers/devices regularly according to manufacturers' instructions. Never leave stagnant water in a humidifier/device. Empty the water tank, wipe all surfaces dry, and change the water daily.
The public should observe the health advice below:
Observe personal hygiene;
Do not smoke and avoid alcohol consumption;
Strainers in water taps and shower heads should be inspected, cleaned, descaled and disinfected regularly or at a frequency recommended by the manufacturer;
If a fresh-water plumbing system is properly maintained, it is not necessary to install domestic water filters. Use of water filters is not encouraged as clogging occurs easily, which can promote growth of micro-organisms. In case water filters are used, the pore size should be 0.2 micrometres (µm) and the filter needs to be changed periodically according to the manufacturer's recommendations;
Drain and clean water tanks of buildings at least quarterly;
Drain or purge for at least one minute infrequently used water outlets (e.g. water taps, shower heads and hot water outlets) and stagnant points of the pipework weekly or before use;
Seek and follow doctors' professional advice regarding the use and maintenance of home respiratory devices and use only sterile water (not distilled or tap water) to clean and fill the reservoir. Clean and maintain the device regularly according to the manufacturer's instructions. After cleaning/disinfection, rinse the device with sterile water, cooled freshly boiled water or water filtered with 0.2 µm filters. Never leave stagnant water in the device. Empty the water tank, keep all surfaces dry, and change the water daily; and
When handling garden soil, compost and potting mixes:
Wear gloves and a face mask;
Water gardens and compost gently using low pressure;
Open composted potting mixes slowly and make sure the opening is directed away from the face;
Wet the soil to reduce dust when potting plants; and
Avoid working in poorly ventilated places such as enclosed greenhouses.
The public may visit the CHP'sLD page, theCode of Practice for Prevention of LDand theHousekeeping Guidelines for Cold and Hot Water Systems for Building Managementof the Prevention of LD Committee, and the CHP'srisk-based strategyfor prevention and control of LD.
December 2024 issue of "Hong Kong Monthly Digest of Statistics" now available
The Census and Statistics Department (C&SD) published today (December 16) the December 2024 issue of the "Hong Kong Monthly Digest of Statistics" (HKMDS).
Apart from providing up-to-date statistics, this issue also contains two feature articles entitled "The Four Key Industries in the Hong Kong Economy" and "Analysis of Hong Kong's External Merchandise Trade by Industry".
"The Four Key Industries in the Hong Kong Economy"
The Government has been actively pursuing economic development in order to keep up the competitive advantage of Hong Kong. The traditional Four Key Industries in Hong Kong, namely financial services, tourism, trading and logistics, and professional and producer services, have been the driving force of Hong Kong's economic growth, providing impetus to growth of other sectors and creating employment.
This feature article analyses the economic contribution and employment situation in respect of the Four Key Industries in 2023. Taken together, the share of the total value added of the Four Key Industries in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was 57.1%, while the percentage share of total employment was 42.4%.
For enquiries about this feature article, please contact the National Income Branch (2) of the C&SD (Tel: 3903 7002; email: gdp-p@censtatd.gov.hk).
"Analysis of Hong Kong's External Merchandise Trade by Industry"
The C&SD has compiled a set of statistics on trade by industry of importers/exporters in order to provide insights into the external merchandise trading activities of individual industries.
In 2023, "transportation, storage, postal and courier services" and "import/export and wholesale trades" were the two major industries, together contributing about 92% of the total trade value. On the export side, the contribution of small and medium sized enterprises in these two industries was 52% and 62% of their respective exports.
This feature article also presents further analyses of imports and exports of major industries by major trading partner and major commodity group.
For enquiries about this feature article, please contact the Trade Analysis Section of the C&SD (Tel: 2582 4914; email: trade@censtatd.gov.hk).
Published in bilingual form, the HKMDS is a compact volume of official statistics containing about 130 tables. It collects up-to-date statistical series on various aspects of the social and economic situation of Hong Kong. Topics include population; labour; external trade; National Income and Balance of Payments; prices; business performance; energy; housing and property; government accounts, finance and insurance; and transport, communications and tourism. For selected key statistical items, over 20 charts depicting the annual trend in the past decade and quarterly or monthly trend in the recent two years are also available. Users can download the Digest at the website of the C&SD (www.censtatd.gov.hk/en/EIndexbySubject.html?pcode=B1010002&scode=460).
Enquiries about the contents of the Digest can be directed to the Statistical Information Dissemination Section (1) of the C&SD (Tel: 2582 4738; email: gen-enquiry@censtatd.gov.hk).
