Colombia: 2010 Dengue Cases

[Shiloh]

Source: http://news.xinhuanet.com/english201...c_13166805.htm

State of emergency declared in Colombian city over dengue outbreak
English.news.cn 2010-02-07 13:57:31

BOGOTA, Feb. 6 (Xinhua) -- A state of emergency has been declared in the Colombian city of Cali, capital of western Cauca province, after the outbreak of hemorrhagic dengue killed nine people there, according to the country's health department.

At least 1,247 dengue cases have been found in Cauca, and 162 of the victims are in a serious condition, said the Department of Health.

Dengue fever is common in many Central American and Caribbean countries. Its symptoms include high fever, nausea, rashes, backache and headache.

Most dengue cases are not fatal, but misdiagnosis or delayed treatment can cause death as some may advance with severe gastrointestinal bleeding and shock.

Several deaths in Cali were due to misdiagnosis, local health official said.

Colombia has reported 2,502 cases of dengue fever this year, with 594 of them becoming severe cases, according to the latest report by the Department of Health.

[Shiloh]

Re: Colombia: Dengue cases

Source: http://www.laht.com/article.asp?Arti...tegoryId=12393

Dengue Emergency Declared in Colombian City after 5 Deaths

BOGOTA ? The deaths of four children and an adult from hemorrhagic dengue so far this year has obliged authorities of the southwestern Colombian city of Cali to declare a health emergency, officials said Saturday.

Municipal Health Secretary Alejandro Varela made the state-of-emergency announcement after saying that, between January and February, 718 suspected and symptomatic cases of dengue were attended at the city?s public and private medical centers.

Of those, 111 cases have been confirmed by means of diagnostic tests, Varela said. Those who died were a 24-year-old patient and four minors.

The official made an ?urgent? call in the local daily El Pais asking parents ?to take their children to emergency services whenever they get a high fever,? so they can receive the opportune care.

?The problem of dengue in the city is of supreme concern to the Public Health Secretariat. The epidemiologists? report shows that those who died became sick inside their homes, so it is essential that the community comply with and immediately put into practice the recommended preventive measures,? Varela said.

Authorities carried out fumigations in the different neighborhoods of Cali, capital of the province of Valle del Cauca, to keep the dengue from spreading.

?We?re taking the necessary measures to help mitigate the proliferation of the dengue-carrier mosquito. Educational and operational actions are being stepped up,? Cali?s Mayor Jorge Ivan Ospina said.

Dengue, a serious viral disease transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, is characterized by high fever, intense headaches, muscle pain, gastro-intestinal problems and rashes.

Hemorrhagic dengue, in addition to having symptoms associated with classic dengue, like fever, headaches and joint pain, can also produce internal bleeding.

[Shiloh]

Re: Dengue Emergency Declared in Colombian City after 5 Deaths

Source: http://colombiareports.com/colombia-...gue-fever.html

Colombian government fears dengue fever epidemic
Tuesday, 23 February 2010 09:57 Brett Borkan

Colombian authorities expressed concerns on Monday that the spread of dengue fever could become an epidemic in the rural regions along its borders.

Colombia's Social Protection Minister Diego Palacio warned that "all of our borders have the presence of transmittable diseases" because they are "less than 1,800 meters above sea level" and that "the area on the boarder with Ecuador is critical," with regards to the spread of dengue fever, reported Caracol Radio on Monday.

Palacio went on to explain that the government is seeking to set up bilateral agreements with neighboring countries in order to contain the spread of the disease.

According to Palacio, Colombia will work to sign an agreement with Ecuador within the next week. "We raised the possibility of signing a bilateral agreement [with Ecuador] that lets us conduct activities together in order to confront dengue fever in the rural border areas, and carry out activities of education, prevention, diagnostics, and treatment."

The most recent report from the National Health Institute in Colombia shows that in the last year, eighteen people have died and another 15,000 have been infected by dengue fever in the country.

The Colombian authorities have been concerned for several months now about the spread of mosquito-transmitted diseases such as dengue and malaria, following an exceptionally hot and dry season.

A state of emergency was declared in Cali several weeks ago after an outbreak of dengue fever killed at least nine people there.

Dengue fever is a mosquito-born, life-threatening disease similar to malaria, which occurs widely in tropical regions of the world. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), two-fifths of the world's population, or 2.5 billion people, are at risk of the disease, and that "there may be 50 million dengue infections worldwide every year."

The WHO estimate that dengue fever is "now endemic in more than 100 countries."

[Shiloh]

Re: Colombia: 2010 Dengue Cases

Source: http://colombiareports.com/colombia-...-the-rise.html

Dengue deaths skyrocket as Colombian temperatures soar
Friday, 12 March 2010 09:29 Kirsten Begg

Dengue fever-related deaths are skyrocketing in Colombia as temperatures around the country soar, with 22 fatalities from the deadly disease recorded in the Andean nation in the first six weeks of 2010, compared to 44 in total in 2009.

Colombia's National Health Institute reported that cases of contagion are also on the rise. There were 2,092 reported cases of the fatal fever in the first week of January compared with 3,622 in the second week of February.

The Colombian cities of Cali and Villavicencio and the whole Tolima department have declared a state of health emergency. The Colombian government declared the situation had reached epidemic status in mid February.

Colombian authorities are also concerned that dengue-carrying mosquitos are now in present in regions of Colombia where they were not previously found.

The director of Colombia's National Health Institute, Juan Gonzalo Lopez, said before the mosquitos were only found 800 meters above sea level, now they are altitudes of 1,800 meters...

[Shiloh]

Re: Colombia: 2010 Dengue Cases

Source: http://www.speroforum.com/site/artic...ever+emergency

Colombia: Dengue fever emergency
There are now more than 25,000 cases of the deadly fever in Colombia.
Monday, March 15, 2010
By Spero News

n the year 2010, there have been 7 deaths as of March 11 caused by dengue fever, 5 of them in Cali. The outbreak in the region has reached a total of 5,392. The information was confirmed by the National Institute of Health (INS), based on data received from all the secretariats of the Health Department.

Hector Fabio Useche, Secretary of the Department of Valle, said in an official statement that the deaths were not caused by direct attack by the virus itself, but by an incorrect medical diagnosis. "Dengue fever should not cause deaths. These deaths occurred because the diagnosis was not accurate," said the Secretary of the Department. To support this view, he insisted that "dengue fever is a virus, and a correct diagnosis is crucial because there is no treatment, just rest and hydration."

Cali is the region that always presents the highest number of cases, because it has more inhabitants. Other regions show a higher percentage rate: Tolima, Pereira, C?cuta or Meta. According to the Department of Epidemiology of the Health Secretariat, during 2009 there have been confirmed 2,039 (47.7%) laboratory cases and of these, 16.4% were diagnosed as severe dengue. The last report of 2010 reported that from the fifth week there is a decrease in the percentage of cases of severe dengue, until the ninth week (2,652 cases), attributed to the effectiveness of communication strategies and education communities and medical personnel. The population is consulting with health services and also the management of cases proceeds properly.

As of March 11, there has been a total of 25,656 cases of dengue fever at the national level. Of these, 2,652 (10.2%) correspond to severe dengue.

[Shiloh]

Re: Colombia: 2010 Dengue Cases

Source: http://colombiareports.com/colombia-...s-in-2010.html


Dengue fever kills 93 Colombians in 2010
Thursday, 03 June 2010 11:23 Camilla Pease-Watkin

So far this year Colombia has recorded almost 78,000 cases of dengue fever throughout the country, with 93 deaths caused by the disease, reported Semana on Thursday.

According to Colombia's National Health Institute (INS), the country suffered a total of 77,939 cases of dengue between January 1 and May 27 of this year, with 1.5% of cases resulting in a fatality.

In recent weeks authorities have recorded a significant increase in cases in the departments of Arauca, Atl?ntico, Casanare, Cesar and Santander, as well as in the northern city of Santa Marta...

...Last year there were 71,000 recorded cases of dengue fever and 44 recorded fatalities...

[Shiloh]

Re: Colombia: 2010 Dengue Cases

Source: http://colombiareports.com/colombia-...-colombia.html

Dengue fever cases spike in Colombia
Friday, 18 June 2010 11:44 Brett Borkan

The incidence of dengue fever in Colombia rose by 15% in the last two weeks, with a total of 90,000 cases and 99 deaths from the disease so far this year, El Colombiano reported Friday.

According to Colombia's National Health Institute (INS), 90,360 cases have been reported thus far in 2010, a jump from the 78,000 and 93 deaths the institute reported two weeks ago.

According to the INS, the most heavily affected areas of the country include the department of Valle del Cauca in south-eastern Colombia, which reported 24 deaths, Santander in the northeast, which reported eleven deaths, and the central departments of Meta and Tolina, each registering ten deaths.

The INS also noted an increase of reported cases in the departments of Arauca, Antioquia, Cundinamarca, Huila, and Bol?var, and urged local governments to "strengthen their interdisciplinary strategies for executing contingency plans."

According to the report, the Colombian government and the Pan-American Health Organization have allocated COP800 million to coordinate response efforts to the disease.

In 2009, Colombia witnessed 71,000 recorded cases of dengue fever and 44 fatalities...

[Gert van der Hoek]

Re: Colombia: 2010 Dengue Cases

From Crofsblog


June 25, 2010

Colombia: 106 dengue deaths


Via EuropaPress.es:

En la primera mitad de año murieron por dengue en Colombia 106 personas, mientras que en todo 2009 sólo 44.[106 persons die of dengue in first half of this year compared to only 44 in all of 2009]

Excerpt, with my translation:

Al menos 106 personas han muerto este año en Colombia a causa del dengue, una enfermedad de la que se han registrado más de 97.000 casos en todo el país, informaron este jueves las autoridades sanitarias colombianas. En 2009 murieron por dengue en Colombia 44 personas.

At least 106 persons have died in Colombia this year from dengue, a disease that has recorded over 97,000 cases in the whole country, according to a report by health authorities this Thursday. In 2009, 44 persons died from dengue in Colombia.

http://crofsblogs.typepad.com/h5n1/2010/06/colombia-106-dengue-deaths.html