Hanoi faces high risk of dengue outbreak

Hanoi is at a high risk of dengue, with the number of infections in the city increasing three times compared to the same period last year.

According to data from the Hanoi Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the city recorded 308 new cases in the past week, bringing the total number of infections this year to 1342. The total number is three times higher than in the same period last year, the center said.

It is mainly found in Dong Da County, Thuong Tinh County, Thanh Chi County, Than Oai County, Phu Xuyen County, Hoang Mai County, and Ba Dinh County.

Tan Manhong, the emergency department at the National Tropical Hospital, said the hospital has been treating patients with severe dengue fever. “Currently, the northern regions are at their peak, especially during the rainy season,” he said.

He said there is no vaccine for dengue and there is no specific treatment, so people should be vigilant regarding preventing the disease. “In addition to stopping the spread of the virus, especially in the more severe stages of the disease, patients should be closely monitored, usually from the fourth day onwards,” he said. On the fourth day, the patients were vulnerable to dengue shock, he said.

Complications can be neglected because many people confuse the symptoms of influenza for dengue or Covid-19, he said. He said, “If you have symptoms such as fever, cough, and body aches, you should go to a medical facility and get tested and diagnosed.

◆ Disease prevention

According to the city’s health department representative, the task force will continue to be prepared to quickly respond to possible developments in the city.

The Ministry of Health has also instructed relevant departments to strengthen patient monitoring in communities and hospitals to ensure that the disease is dealt with quickly, the Ministry of Health said. In addition, it said that it has strengthened monitoring of areas where cases are recorded to prevent the spread of the disease.

He said environmental sanitation and larval extermination campaigns in high-risk areas would be implemented immediately. The spread of dengue fever prevention was promoted so that preventive measures might be actively implemented at home.

The Hanoi Center for Disease Control and Prevention has instructed local schools to develop disease-fighting plans, focusing on high-risk diseases such as dengue fever, COVID-19 and influenza. Schools have been instructed to prepare facilities and medical equipment to prevent disease and form teams to kill larvae, according to regulations.

Encourage teachers and school students to actively practice environmental hygiene; They asked people to practice personal hygiene measures such as washing hands with soap and clean water, wearing a mask, covering their mouths when coughing or sneezing, and not spitting.

Schools should work with local health centers to expedite all possible cases. To prevent dengue fever, the Ministry of Health urged people to take precautionary measures, such as killing larvae for 10 minutes a week and washing water tanks and other water containers regularly.

People should sleep under mosquito nets during the day, wear long sleeves, spray mosquito repellent, and use mosquito repellent to prevent mosquito bites. In particular, dengue fever should not be treated arbitrarily at home.