VietNamNet Bridge – The number of dengue infections has risen significantly in the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta, particularly in Can Tho City and the provinces of Dong Thap, Ben Tre, Ca Mau and Tien Giang, according to the Ministry of Health.



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A medical professional helps a resident take necessary measures to prevent dengue fever at home. 


Dong Thap Province has the highest number of dengue cases in the delta, with over 1,000 infected cases, including 72 serious cases and two deaths, with high rates in Cao Lanh City and the districts of Lap Vo, Cao Lanh and Thanh Binh.

Dr. Duong An Han, director of the province’s Preventive Medicine Centre, said the province had an average of about 50 dengue fever cases per week.

“People do not care about taking preventive measures. In some cases, patients visit doctors too late thus the infection becomes serious.” he said.

Dr. Huynh Minh Truc, director of Can Tho Preventive Medicine Centre, said the city had seen nearly 600 cases of dengue fever since the beginning of the year.

Can Tho’s Children Hospital has conducted 853 in-patient dengue fever treatments from patients both inside and outside the province, and about 2,600 out-patient cases, an increase of 10 per cent compared to the same period last year.

Dengue fever often occurs in children under aged 15, with 84 per cent of total infected cases in Can Tho and surrounding areas. 

In Ben Tre Province, more than 700 dengue fever cases have been detected since the beginning of the year, a drop of 20 per cent against the same period last year.

However, more dengue infections are spreading through all districts in the province, with one death occurring in Giong Trom District’s Tan Thanh Commune.

Ca Mau’s Women and Children Hospital said the number of children hospitalised for dengue fever rose against the previous month, with 379 in-patient cases.

The number of dengue cases increased by 148 per cent in May and 405 per cent this month, compared to the same period last year.

Dr. Tran Thien Ly, head of the Ca Mau’s Woman and Children Hospital’s Intensive Care and Anti-poison Department, said that dengue infections over the last two weeks were increasing in number but also in seriousness.

Preventive measures

The province has seen three kinds of four types of dengue viruses, with 83.7 per cent being the D1 type, according to the Tien Giang Province’s Preventive Medicine Centre.

Dr. Nguyen Trung Nghia, deputy director of Can Tho City’s Department of Health, said the city People’s Committee and the department had implemented many plans to prevent and control the disease, organising campaigns to kill mosquito larvae in the city.

However, the number of dengue cases is still increasing.

Dong Thap’s Preventive Medicine Centre carried out a second campaign in June and a third in August, killing larvae and spraying insecticides to kill mosquitoes.

Infected patients can be infected again and again, even more dangerous than the previous times.

Nguyen Thanh Long, Deputy Minister of Health, said that dengue-fever preventive vaccines had not been used in the community as the price was high and residents doubted the efficacy. Thus, taking preventive measures is necessary.

In rural Viet Nam, people have a habit of using jugs or tanks to hold water, which creates favorable conditions for mosquito larvae.

The Ministry of Health has recommended that people cover all water tanks, release fish into water tanks to kill mosquito larvae, replace water in flower vases and remove waste materials.

People should also sleep under mosquito nets in un-airconditioned rooms, wear long-sleeved shirts and pants, co-operate with the health sector in chemical spraying and preventive methods, and immediately visit hospitals if they have a high temperature. 

Dengue fever cases in Hanoi up 400% in 2017

Hanoi health officials reported on June 25 that the capital city had experienced a dramatic increase in dengue fever cases this year to date compared to 2016, reported the Vietnam News Agency.

City hospitals and clinics recorded 2,576 cases of dengue from January to June this year, a more than fourfold increase compared to the same timeframe in 2016. Of the total, one death had been recorded.

Most of the infected had already fully recovered, except for an estimated 270 that are still under treatment at area hospitals and clinics, said the health officials.

The spike in dengue cases were described as very alarming by Nguyen Nhat Cam, head of the municipal Hanoi Centre for Preventive Medicine. He also expected the number to rise further.

Dengue is a viral infection transmitted by the bite of an infected mosquito. There are four closely related but antigenically different serotypes of the virus that can cause dengue (DEN1, DEN 2, DEN 3, DEN 4).

Dengue has a wide spectrum of infection outcome (asymptomatic to symptomatic). Symptomatic illness can vary from dengue fever (DF) to the more serious dengue haemorrhagic fever (DHF).

Dengue Fever (DF) is marked by an onset of sudden high fever, severe headache, pain behind the eyes, and pain in muscles and joints. Some may also have a rash and varying degree of bleeding from various parts of the body (including nose, mouth and gums or skin bruising).

Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever (DHF) is a more severe form, seen only in a small proportion of those infected. DHF is a stereotypic illness characterized by three phases; febrile phase with high continuous fever usually lasting for less than seven days; critical phase (plasma leaking) lasting one-two days usually apparent when fever comes down, leading to shock if not detected and treated early; convalescence phase lasting two-five days with improvement of appetite, bradycardia (slow heart rate), convalescent rash (white patches in red background), often accompanied by generalized itching (more intense in palms and soles), and diuresis (increase urine output).

There is no specific medication for treatment of a dengue infection, medical personnel can only treat the symptoms. A better option is to eradicate the mosquitoes transmitting the disease, said Mr Hanh.

At present, the prevention campaign faces some difficulties as local people feel reluctant to cooperate with authorities in tackling the problem and spray chemicals to kill the mosquitoes that carry the potentially deadly disease.


VNS/VOV

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