Vietnam - Vietnam dengue fever toll rises to 46

Dengue fever has so far this year claimed 46 lives among 49,011 Vietnamese people who have been infected, according to the Vietnam Administration of Preventive Medicine.

Most of the dengue fever cases have been found in the central and southern regions, the administration said.

It said the epidemic is under control because the number of infections and fatalities has not increased compared to last year’s figures of 128,831 infections and 109 deaths.

However, people should be more aware of the disease and have themselves examined at hospitals as soon as they develop a fever, it added.

Many dengue fever patients have been admitted to the hospital with high fever, viscera hemorrhage or respiratory failure, which made it very difficult or too late to cure, the administration said.

In Ho Chi Minh City, 10 deaths among 9,832 infections had been reported as of October 31. Local authorities said the districts with the highest number of dengue fever cases are those having a lot of abandoned fields, flooded areas and construction sites, which offer a convenient environment for mosquitoes to grow.

Vietnam is one of six countries worst affected by dengue fever in Asia Western Pacific with some 100,000 cases reported every year, according to a report by the Ministry of Health.

Studies have found that it cost US$41 to treat a mild case and $127 for a critical one in 2006, so the mosquito-borne disease has become a burden on people with low incomes, the report says.

The sickness poses a high risk of death because vaccines and a specific remedy are not yet available for the fever, according to the ministry.

Thanh Nien News

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