Vietnam reports 26 dengue deaths
VOV.VN - Vietnam has recorded a total of 93,814 cases of dengue fever, with 26 deaths, since the beginning of the year, according to the Ministry of Health.
Compared to the same period last year, the number of infections decreased by 58.9%, whilst deaths fell by 91 cases.
On the contrary, the capital of Hanoi has seen the number of dengue infections increase rapidly. Statistics show more than 15,300 people have been infected with the virus so far this year, more than three times higher than the same period last year. Three patients have died of the disease.
The capital recorded nearly 2,600 dengue infections this week alone, 1.5 times higher compared to the first week of last month, said the municipal Centre for Diseases Control (CDC), adding infectious cases have been reported in all 30 districts and towns.
Health experts noted that the outbreak in Hanoi is in line with the general epidemiological trend of the entire region.
Typically, the city, as well as other provinces in the northern region, start recording cases from July and August, with numbers peaking in September and October.
They stressed that this year weather factors such as heat and rain have been very favourable for mosquitoes to breed at high densities, further spreading the virus within the community.
According to Dr. Nguyen Trung Cap, vice director of National Hospital of Tropical Diseases, the number of dengue inflicted hospitalisations has been increasing rapidly over recent days.
On average, the hospital receives four to five cases daily, with some displaying warning signs of dengue shock, including symptoms of abdominal pain, liver pain, mucosal bleeding, low platelet count, and concentrated blood, said the health professional.
In a bid to deal with the unpredictable developments of dengue fever, localities are required to boost environmental sanitation, kill larvae in high-risk areas, and launch communication campaigns to equip people with prevention measures.
