Myanmar: Dengue cases

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Source: http://www.dvb.no/english/news.php?id=2511

Lethal dengue fever hits Irrawaddy

May 12, 2009 (DVB)?A lethal strain of dengue fever has hit Burma?s southern Irrawaddy division, and left hospitals struggling to cope with the influx of patients, many of whom are under seven-years-old.

A resident of Irrawaddy?s Henzada town said that the local hospital was running out of beds in its children's ward.

?The hospital staff now have to use chairs as makeshift beds for all the child patients in the town and from nearby small townships,? said the resident.

?Recently, two children have died of the fever and the hospital is asking help from sympathisers to donate as many beds as they can.?

He added that local clinics were also being crowded with children who suffered from the fever.

Hemorrhagic dengue fever is passed through the bite of a mosquito, and is common in Burma around the onset of the monsoon season.

Another resident from Henzada?s Yongyi ward said that locals in his area were also suffering from chicken pox and an outbreak of dysentery.

Henzada township hospital and the Township Peace and Development Council were unavailable for comment.

Reporting by Naw Say Phaw

 

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Re: Myanmar: Dengue cases

Source: http://www.mizzima.com/news/inside-...en-die-of-dengue-in-north-western-burma-.html

Ten children die of dengue in north-western Burma PDF Print E-mail
by Salai Pi Pi
Friday, 17 July 2009 19:15

New Delhi (Mizzima) ? At least 10 children have died and several are ill after being afflicted by Dengue, a mosquito-borne viral disease, in Kalemyo a town near the Indo-Burma border in Sagaing Division, north-western Burma, an official at a private clinic said.

?As far as I know at least 10 children have died. A lot of other children are admitted in the hospital, which is crowded with patients,? the official in Thapyaynyo clinic in Kalemyo said.

When contacted, an official at the Kalemyo General Hospital on Friday said, the ?Patient Ward? of the hospital is full of children being treated for Dengue haemorrhagic fever.

The outbreak of Dengue was noticed in Kalemyo in the beginning of June and has been continuing since.

A local resident of Kalemyo told Mizzima that most of the children in her neighborhood are suffering from the disease. While many have been taken to hospital several others are depending on private clinics.

Dengue in Kalemyo, a town located on the border of Chin state in western Burma, is common during the monsoons.

Local residents said, despite being a curable disease, Malaria and Typhoid continue to claim several lives every year.

 

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Re: Myanmar: Dengue cases

Source: http://www.mizzima.com/news/inside-...-for-over-3700-dengue-patients-annually-.html

Rangoon accounts for over 3,700 dengue patients annually
by Myo Thein
Friday, 24 July 2009 20:21


Rangoon (Mizzima) ?There were over 3,700 dengue fever patients annually in Rangoon Division alone, of whom about 30 patients died, statistics released by the Burmese Ministry of Health said.

The statistics compiled by the Ministry of Health said 18,568 patients were afflicted with dengue fever in five years from 2004 to 2009, of whom 151 died. The rate of affliction by the virus and death was the highest in the monsoon season - June, July and August, the statistics said.

The highest number of dengue patients recorded was in 2005. There were 5,621 cases and 40 died. In 2007, the number of cases dropped to 4,948 but 54 died from dengue. It is the highest death rate during these five years.

The statistics said there were 838 dengue patients between January 1 to June 23, 2009, of whom six died.

Among 45 townships in Rangoon Division, the densely populated and suburban areas such as Thaketa, Thingangyun, Tamwe, Hlinetharyar, Hlegu, Taikgyi and Shwepyithar have the highest rate of dengue fever cases annually.

This year too, the townships in the outskirts have the highest incidence of dengue in Rangoon Division indicating that the healthcare system in these townships is poor.

The statistics is updated till June 23 but the highest incidence is in June during the six-month period with 349 cases and four deaths reported.

Some have cast their doubts on the statistics compiled by the ministry as they think the figure does not reflect the reality.

A doctor from the Health Ministry admitted that there are flaws and weaknesses in compiling the dengue fever statistics based on local dispensary units, which are incomplete and conceal some facts and figures.

Though the highest incidence is yet to be collected for this year, it will not be less than the 2008 rate of incidence and deaths, he said.

The incidence of dengue fever cases in Rangoon from 2004 till date:

Year cases reported / death

2004 2,865/ 8
2005 5,621/ 40
2006 1,530/ 18
2007 4,948/ 54
2008 3,604/ 31
2009 ( till June 23) 838/ 6

 

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Re: Myanmar: Dengue cases

Source: http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=16408

Several Die in Kachin State?s Worst Dengue Fever Outbreak
By SAW YAN NAING Monday, July 27, 2009

An outbreak of dengue fever in Myitkyina, capital of Burma?s Kachin State, has claimed several lives, according to local residents.

Myitkyina?s public hospital wards are full of dengue patients and many residents are seeking medical attention in private clinics, local sources say. Most of the patients are children and elderly people.

?The situation is terrible,? said one local resident, Ma Grang.

Local hospitals and clinics are overburdened by the increasing number of cases, and Ma Grang said many patients waited in vain all day for treatment. The Kachin News Group reported that more then 120 children are being treated in a local hospital known as the ?Children?s Ward.?

Hospital and clinic staff told The Irrawaddy they had no authority to give out information on the outbreak, which began in mid-June. No official death toll has been reported.

The Kachin News Group reported that a 16-year-old schoolgirl, Hkawng Naw, was among the recent victims,. She died on July 23.

Dengue fever outbreaks occur every year in Kachin State, but the current epidemic is the worst ever.

 

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Re: Myanmar: Dengue cases

Source: http://www.narinjara.com/details.asp?id=2319


Three Children Die from Dengue Fever in Arakan

8/24/2009

Sittwe: Three children died with dengue fever in Arakan State within the first week of August, according to a report of the journal Weekly Eleven.

Among the victims are two children from Sittwe, the capital of Arakan, and another child from Kyaukpru, the second largest city in the state.

The number of dengue fever infections in Arakan State was up to 329 within the first week of August, the government health department is quoted as saying.

The towns of Sittwe and Kyaukpru have been most affected by dengue, but other areas in Arakan State have also seen the number of people falling ill with dengue twice what it was last year.

According to a local source, the medical facilities for dengue fever patients are very poor in Arakan State. At the same time, many hospitals are facing a shortage of medicine to treat the illness.

The condition of affected children in rural areas of the state is most serious due to lack of treatment and medicine. In addition to a lack of medicine, patients have not been receiving treatment from hospitals systematically.

A medical doctor from Sittwe said the number of dengue fever patients in Arakan State may be higher than the reported figure of 329 because in some rural areas it is difficult to get an accurate count due to lack of communications.

Many poor families in Arakan State can not send their dengue affected children to the hospitals because the fees for medical treatment in Arakan is more than they can afford.