Warning Dengue fever Thailand

[Caring]

Thailand warns of dengue fever outbreak

BANGKOK: -- The Thai government has warned of a possible major outbreak of dengue fever this year as a result of a new strain found last year.

The country's central and north-eastern regions are expected to be worst affected by the new dengue virus, dubbed the 'fourth strain', according to the Permanent Secretary for Public Health, Dr. Vichai Tienthavorn.

There have been nearly 3,000 cases of dengue reported, including two deaths, in the first two months of this year.

This is a 75 percent increase on the same period last year, he said.

This has raised concerns of a potential outbreak during the rainy season in the next few months.

Local health workers have been instructed to beef up measures to prevent the possible outbreak.

The government also plans to launch a campaign to make Thais aware of the danger of an increase in the disease.

The Public Health Ministry aims to keep the number of dengue patients to no more than 50 per 100,000 population this year.

That would mean no more than 31,500 people across the country.

The number of dengue fever patients has risen in recent years, from less than 20,000 cases in the year 2000 to more than 110,000 in the last two years.

The number of cases found in the previous three months of a year indicates the number likely to occur the following year, according to the Director-General of the Department of Medical Sciences, Dr. Paijit Warachit.

Last year there were more than 7,500 victims of dengue fever between October and December -- the highest in the past few years, raising fears that there will be a serious outbreak in 2005, he said.

--TNA 2005-03-21

[frumau]

Ja ik had het al eerder gelezen. Eerst de jaarlijkse droogte en nu een uitbreiding van het aantal met knokkelkoorts besmette mensen. Hopenlijk wordt de ziekte snel de kop ingedrukt!

[khonkaen]

de dengue mug is makkelijk te herkennen .. zij is groter dan andere muggen en is dwarsgestreept .... steekt alleen overdag
de mug komt het meest voor bij mensenconcentraties in de steden

zo gauw je denkt gestoken te zijn, ga dan naar een ziekenhuis voor onderzoek



willem, nederthai