Deadly Plague Found in Burma

[tetano]

RANGOON ? An unspecified number of Rangoon residents have been diagnosed with plague, a contagious disease primarily transmitted by rodents (mostly rats), according to the Burmese Ministry of Health (MOH) in Naypyidaw.

An epidemiologist at MOH who asked to remain anonymous told The Irrawaddy that some people infected with plague were found in Rangoon in June but all survived after treatment by the MOH.

?It was the first time in decades that we found plague in Rangoon,? said the MOH official.

The MOH has yet to make a public statement regarding the diagnosis of plague.

A Rangoon medical students said it is not appropriate that the regime has covered up information about the disease and that it should be open about health-related issues that directly affect the public.

?Having no openness in health issues means we are probably putting the lives of people at risk,? said the student at the University of Medicine in Rangoon.

A medical specialist in Rangoon, however, said that the plague nowadays is not fatal and can be treated successfully if diagnosed early.

The MOH and other ministries have developed and implemented a project to eradicate rats for the prevention of plague, according to a MOH official in Naypyidaw.

?Rat eradication is secretly going on in different departments,? he said.

An official from the Rangoon Municipal Committee said it had formed special task forces for rat eradication and has killed tens of thousands of rats on a daily basis.

The MOH reportedly has determined through laboratory experiments that rats migrating to the south from Naypyidaw are carrying bacteria for contagious disease such as the plague, and it was developing a treatment program should the disease spread.

A plague awareness program has started among government staff in Naypyidaw, according to one source.

State-run newspapers recently warned that the plague can be transmitted to humans by fleas, but it failed to mention that the disease had already infected people in Rangoon.

An official with the Livestock Breeding and Veterinary Department (LBVD) said people who find rat corpses should take them to the nearest LBVD department for examination .

Details of plague cases in Burma can be found in the WHO report on Global Surveillance of Epidemic-prone Infectious Diseases.

http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=18879

 

[alert]

Re: Deadly Plague Found in Burma

http://www.promedmail.org/pls/apex/..._BACK_PAGE,F2400_P1001_PUB_MAIL_ID:1000,83539

Archive Number 20100706.2250
Published Date 06-JUL-2010
Subject PRO/AH/EDR> Plague - Myanmar: (YA)

PLAGUE - MYANMAR: (YANGON)
**************************
A ProMED-mail post
<http://www.promedmail.org>
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases
<http://www.isid.org>

Date: Mon 5 Jul 2010
Source: The Irrawaddy [edited]
<http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=18879>


An unspecified number of Yangon (previously called Rangoon) residents
have been diagnosed with plague, a contagious disease primarily
transmitted by rodents (mostly rats), according to the Burmese
Ministry of Health (MOH) in Naypyidaw.

An epidemiologist at the MOH who asked to remain anonymous told The
Irrawaddy that some people infected with plague were found in Yangon
in June 2010 but all survived after treatment by the MOH. "It was the
1st time in decades that we found plague in Yangon," said the MOH
official.

The MOH has yet to make a public statement regarding the diagnosis of plague.

The MOH and other ministries have developed and implemented a project
to eradicate rats for the prevention of plague, according to a MOH
official in Naypyidaw. "Rat eradication is secretly going on in
different departments," he said. An official from the Yangon
Municipal Committee said it had formed special task forces for rat
eradication and has killed tens of thousands of rats on a daily basis.

The MOH reportedly has determined through laboratory experiments that
rats migrating to the south from Naypyidaw are carrying bacteria for
contagious disease such as the plague, and it was developing a
treatment program should the disease spread.

A plague awareness program has started among government staff in
Naypyidaw, according to a source.

State-run newspapers recently warned that the plague can be
transmitted to humans by fleas, but it failed to mention that the
disease had already infected people in Yangon. An official with the
Livestock Breeding and Veterinary Department (LBVD) said people who
find rat corpses should take them to the nearest LBVD department for
examination.

[Byline: Aung Thet Wine]

--
Communicated by:
ProMED-mail
<promed@promedmail.org>

[The manifestations of _Yersinia pestis_ infection in these reported
cases is not stated. Most cases are due to bubonic plague following
the bite of an infected rodent flea causing a swollen and very tender
lymph gland. The swollen gland is called a "bubo." Bubonic plague
should be suspected when a person develops a swollen gland, fever,
chills, headache, and extreme exhaustion, and has a history of
possible exposure to infected rodents, rabbits, or fleas. A person
usually becomes ill with bubonic plague 2 to 6 days after being
bitten.

When bubonic plague is left untreated, plague bacteria invade the
bloodstream. As the plague bacteria multiply in the bloodstream, they
spread rapidly throughout the body and cause a severe and often fatal
condition. Infection of the lungs with the plague bacterium causes
the pneumonic form of plague, a severe respiratory illness. The
infected person may experience high fever, chills, cough, and
breathing difficulty and may expel bloody sputum. If plague patients
are not given specific antibiotic therapy, the disease can progress
rapidly to death.

There were 2 issues of rodent control mentioned in the posting that
could cause many more cases of human plague. If rodent eradication
programs are introduced without a parallel program to spray for
fleas, the fleas will flee the dead rodent and increase the risk of
feeding on humans. Picking up a dead rat for examination can even
more so put the "picker-upper" at risk. - Mod.LL]

[The interactive HealthMap/ProMED map for Yangon is available at:
<http://healthmap.org/r/01D3> - CopyEd.EJP]

 

[Ronan Kelly]

Re: Deadly Plague Found in Burma

Naypyidaw plague and dengue outbreaks infect troops, children
Friday, 09 July 2010 23:52 Kyaw Kha .
Chiang Mai (Mizzima) ? Outbreaks of plague and dengue fever are spreading through military units in Naypyidaw, the Burmese military regime?s seat of government, according to a military hospital source.

Infected soldiers were admitted to the new 1,000-bed military hospital in Naypyidaw for treatment. Moreover diarrhoea and dengue fever is spreading among residents in the capital?s neighbouring township of Pyinmana, home to 100,000 people.

?Children under-12 [of soldiers] in these Naypyidaw military units infected with dengue fever and plague were admitted to the children?s hospital and the troops infected with dengue and plague and their children over 12 were admitted here,? an officer from the military hospital, who requested anonymity, told Mizzima.

He declined to give further details on the scale of the epidemic.

According to official government figures released last year, Naypyidaw, meaning Royal City, is the third largest city in Burma, with a population of 925,000.

The outbreaks emerge after hundreds of thousands of rodents were reported late last month migrating from their current habitats.

?Mice are moving ?in their thousands? away from lakes and reservoirs in central Burma?s Bago and Mandalay divisions and towards urban areas. One man reported seeing fleets of mice on the Mandalay-to-Naypyidaw highway,? an exile media outlet reported on June 30.

In a sign of unusual openness by the junta, Ministry of Health plague warnings were seen in state-run papers on July 1 and 2.

The warning said: ?Sudden death of mice may be because of plague. The people are advised to report and send the dead mice suspected of being infected with plague to the nearest health department?.

However, Dr. Khin Aye Myint from the Social Welfare dispensary in Pyinmana disagreed with any contact with the mice and offered a safer solution.

?The Health Department should instigate a public awareness campaign on plague and dead mice. If suspected, the dead mice should be poured with petrol and burned or should be reported to health department,? Dr. Khin Aye Myint said.

Reuters news agency reported on Wednesday that the Burmese Ministry of Health had also circulated a warning among government departments about rat-borne plague after finding infected dead rodents near a government office in Naypyidaw, an official said.

Moreover residents of Yauktharinn, Kanoo, Yanaung (2) and Shwechi wards in Pyinmana said that diarrhoea and dengue fever were spreading in their locality.

Previously it infected children aged between 5 and 12 but elderly people were now also being infected.

?Some dengue fever patients visited nearby clinics and could recover within one or two days. Some of them were referred to hospitals. There are also many patients suffering from diarrhoea,? a brokerage owner in Yaukthuarinn Ward told Mizzima.

The virus that causes dengue fever is carried by mosquitoes.

Wet, humid weather during the monsoon has encouraged breeding of mosquito larvae in drains, ponds and garbage dumps, which encouraged the breeding of flies and mosquitos and the subsequent spreading of the bacterias that cause diarrhoea through contaminated foods and the virus that causes dengue, Dr. Khin Myint Aye said.

Dengue spreads because of our inability to fight the mosquito menace, he said.

Dengue outbreaks are not rare in Burma. Ministry of Health announced that 910 people were infected with dengue during the January-May period and six those died from this disease that is also known as break-bone fever because of severe pain in the bones and joints that often characterises infection.

At least 80 people were infected in Rangoon in the last week of June, Mizzima reported on July 1.

According to official statistics, 3,129 Burmese people were infected with dengue last year and 37 died.
http://www.mizzima.com/news/inside-...-dengue-outbreaks-infect-troops-children.html

 

[alert]

Re: Deadly Plague Found in Burma

http://www.promedmail.org/pls/apex/..._BACK_PAGE,F2400_P1001_PUB_MAIL_ID:1040,83633

Archive Number 20100712.2336
Published Date 12-ИЮЛ-2010
Subject PRO/MBDS> Plague - Myanmar (02): Naypyidaw, RFI

PLAGUE - MYANMAR (02): NAYPYIDAW, REQUEST FOR INFORMATION
***********************************************
A ProMED-mail post
<http://www.promedmail.org>
ProMED-mail is a program of the
International Society for Infectious Diseases
<http://www.isid.org>

In this posting:
[1] 6 deaths of rats suspected to be carrying the plague
[2] Plague outbreaks in Naypyidaw

******
[1] 6 deaths of rats suspected to be carrying the plague
Date: Thu 8 Jul 2010
Source: Democratic Voice of Burma [edited]
<http://www.dvb.no/news/plague-infected-rats-reach-naypyidaw/10619>


Rats suspected to be carrying the plague have been found dead in
Burma's [Myanmar's] remote capital Naypyidaw, the government's health
ministry has warned.

Around 6 rat corpses were discovered in the compound of a government
office in the newly-built city, which houses mainly civil servants
and government officials. The health ministry has circulated a
warning among state departments, Reuters reported.

This reporting follows sightings of hordes of rodents on the move in
central Burma [Myanmar] at the end of last month [June 2010] that
locals thought could be a sign of an impending natural disaster.

Thousands were spotted heading towards urban areas in central Burma's
[Myanmar's] Bago and Mandalay divisions, while one Rangoon
[Yangon]-based travel agent told Reuters that he had seen "hundreds
of dead mice killed after being driven over by vehicles scattered on
the highway" between Naypyidaw and the former capital.

A warning issued by the health ministry was carried in the
state-owned Kyemon newspaper at the beginning of July [2010]. It
warned civilians and government workers to "prevent infestation of
rats around your house, office, market and neighborhood. Be aware
that if a rat dies in your area, it could be due to the plague," it
continued, and urged people to "contact nearby health centers to test
rats suspected of being infected with the disease."

--
Communicated by:
PRO/MBDS
<promed-mbds@promedmail.org>

******
[2] Plague outbreaks in Naypyidaw
Date: Fri 9 Jul 2010
Source: Mizzima [edited]
<http://www.mizzima.com/news/inside-burma/4099-naypyidaw-plague-and-dengue-outbreaks-infect-troops-children.html>


Outbreaks of plague are spreading through military units in
Naypyidaw, the Burmese [Myanmar] military regime's seat of
government, according to a military hospital source.

Infected soldiers were admitted to the new 1000-bed military hospital
in Naypyidaw for treatment.

"Children under 12 [of soldiers] in these Naypyidaw military units
infected with plague were admitted to the children's hospital, and
the troops infected with plague and their children over 12 were
admitted here," an officer from the military hospital, who requested
anonymity, told Mizzima.

He declined to give further details on the scale of the epidemic.

According to official government figures released last year [2009],
Naypyidaw, meaning Royal City, is the 3rd largest city in Burma
[Myanmar], with a population of 925 000.

The outbreaks emerge after hundreds of thousands of rodents were
reported late last month [June 2010] migrating from their current habitats.

"Mice are moving in their thousands away from lakes and reservoirs in
central Burma's [Myanmar's] Bago and Mandalay divisions and towards
urban areas. One man reported seeing fleets of mice on the
Mandalay-to-Naypyidaw highway," an exile media outlet reported on 30
Jun [2010].

In a sign of openness by the junta, Ministry of Health plague
warnings were seen in state-run papers on [1 Jul 2010] and [2 Jul 2010].

The warning said: "Sudden death of mice may be because of plague. The
people are advised to report and send the dead mice suspected of
being infected with plague to the nearest health department."

However, Dr. Khin Aye Myint from the Social Welfare dispensary in
Pyinmana discouraged any contact with the mice and offered a safer solution.

"The Health Department should instigate a public awareness campaign
on plague and dead mice. If suspected, the dead mice should be poured
with petrol and burned or should be reported to the health
department," Dr. Khin Aye Myint said.

Reuters news agency reported on Wednesday [7 Jul 2010] that the
Burmese [Myanmar] Ministry of Health had also circulated a warning
among government departments about rat-borne plague after finding
infected dead rodents near a government office in Naypyidaw, an official said.

[Byline: Kyaw Kha]

--
Communicated by:
PRO/MBDS
<promed-mbds@promedmail.org>

[The above newswires are the follow up on the situation of plague in
Myanmar. The former report was the 1st report in decades that plague
was found in Yangon (see prior PRO/MBDS posting Plague - Myanmar:
Yangon, RFI 20100707.2256).

Plague is a bacterial zoonosis that causes high mortality (more than
50 percent) in untreated cases and has epidemic potential. People
usually get plague from being bitten by a rodent flea that is
carrying the plague bacterium (_Yersinia pestis_) or by handling an
infected animal. For more details, see
<http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvbid/plague/who_cc/>.

According to the above newswires, there were likely to be new
outbreaks of plague reported from military units in Naypyidaw. The
outbreaks have emerged after hundreds of thousands of rodents were
reported in late June 2010 to be migrating from their current
habitats; around 6 rats corpses were found in Myanmar's remote
capital Naypyidaw. However, the numbers of infected soldiers were not
specified.

PRO/MBDS would appreciate further information from reliable sources
about the situation, clinical manifestations of cases, and magnitude
of plague outbreaks in Myanmar.

For a map of Myanmar with administrative divisions, see
<http://www.un.org/Depts/Cartographic/map/profile/myanmar.pdf>. For
the interactive HealthMap/ProMED-mail map with links to other recent
PRO/MBDS and ProMED-mail postings on Myanmar and neighboring
countries, see <http://healthmap.org/r/01Gd>. - Mod.SCM]