Shiloh
Editor, Senior Moderator
Source: http://www.pacificmagazine.net/news...umea-raise-worries-on-dangerous-dengue-strain
Tahiti, Noumea Raise Worries On Dangerous Dengue Strain
Tuesday: September 16, 2008
(Oceania Flash)
French Polynesian health authorities are stepping up their monitoring of dengue fever cases, with a focus on border control and screening of international passengers, in the light of a regional outbreak of the serotype 4 of the potentially deadly hemorrhagic mosquito-borne fever.
The move was mainly motivated by a recent drastic surge in the number of cases, especially in Fiji (with a current figure that was well over 200 at the weekend and could rapidly double), Palau, Kiribati, American Samoa and neighboring Cook Islands.
As a precautionary measure, the French Pacific territory's health department said it was now increasing its awareness campaign with the local population, but also passengers arriving on international flights.
Another measure is to recommend any person showing signs of dengue and who would have traveled overseas in the 14 days preceding the appearance of symptoms (headache, muscular and joint pains, fever, and nausea) to immediately seek medical advice.
French Polynesia has previously been affected by severe dengue epidemics, but those were of the serotype 1.
The main worry was that the local population, if exposed to the serotype 4, would be even more vulnerable.
Dr. Henri-Pierre Mallet, head of infectious diseases department at the Prevention Unit of the Health Department, said in his latest bulletin that 150 cases of (type 1) dengue fever had been present almost on an endemic basis since the beginning of this year.
Twelve new cases (still of type 1 dengue) appeared in August, a situation Dr. Mallet regards as "stable."
In New Caledonia, where the serotype 1 of dengue fever also prevails, close to 1,000 cases have been detected since the beginning of this year.
There, the main worry is that even though the past three months are usually regarded as not conducive to the development of mosquito larvae (mainly because of the drier and cooler weather conditions), the number of cases, during the same period, has still progressed at a rate of about 15 cases per month.
With the return, in September, of a warmer and more humid climate in the region, health authorities fear the existing ground would be particularly fertile for a fully-fledged Type 1 epidemic.
In New Caledonia, authorities are also worried of a potentially disastrous combination of the existing Type 1 and the surrounding Type 4 viruses, because just like in French Polynesia, the population would be extremely exposed and vulnerable.
Throughout this year, in New Caledonia, spraying has taken place, especially in Noum?a and its suburbs, here most of the French territory's population resides.
There have also been numerous awareness campaigns and the deployment of health department and municipal teams to clean up compounds (even private dwellings) and remove potential breeding sites (such as old tires, old cups, old pots containing still water) and cut overgrown grass and bushes.
http://newspad-pacific.info/
Tahiti, Noumea Raise Worries On Dangerous Dengue Strain
Tuesday: September 16, 2008
(Oceania Flash)
French Polynesian health authorities are stepping up their monitoring of dengue fever cases, with a focus on border control and screening of international passengers, in the light of a regional outbreak of the serotype 4 of the potentially deadly hemorrhagic mosquito-borne fever.
The move was mainly motivated by a recent drastic surge in the number of cases, especially in Fiji (with a current figure that was well over 200 at the weekend and could rapidly double), Palau, Kiribati, American Samoa and neighboring Cook Islands.
As a precautionary measure, the French Pacific territory's health department said it was now increasing its awareness campaign with the local population, but also passengers arriving on international flights.
Another measure is to recommend any person showing signs of dengue and who would have traveled overseas in the 14 days preceding the appearance of symptoms (headache, muscular and joint pains, fever, and nausea) to immediately seek medical advice.
French Polynesia has previously been affected by severe dengue epidemics, but those were of the serotype 1.
The main worry was that the local population, if exposed to the serotype 4, would be even more vulnerable.
Dr. Henri-Pierre Mallet, head of infectious diseases department at the Prevention Unit of the Health Department, said in his latest bulletin that 150 cases of (type 1) dengue fever had been present almost on an endemic basis since the beginning of this year.
Twelve new cases (still of type 1 dengue) appeared in August, a situation Dr. Mallet regards as "stable."
In New Caledonia, where the serotype 1 of dengue fever also prevails, close to 1,000 cases have been detected since the beginning of this year.
There, the main worry is that even though the past three months are usually regarded as not conducive to the development of mosquito larvae (mainly because of the drier and cooler weather conditions), the number of cases, during the same period, has still progressed at a rate of about 15 cases per month.
With the return, in September, of a warmer and more humid climate in the region, health authorities fear the existing ground would be particularly fertile for a fully-fledged Type 1 epidemic.
In New Caledonia, authorities are also worried of a potentially disastrous combination of the existing Type 1 and the surrounding Type 4 viruses, because just like in French Polynesia, the population would be extremely exposed and vulnerable.
Throughout this year, in New Caledonia, spraying has taken place, especially in Noum?a and its suburbs, here most of the French territory's population resides.
There have also been numerous awareness campaigns and the deployment of health department and municipal teams to clean up compounds (even private dwellings) and remove potential breeding sites (such as old tires, old cups, old pots containing still water) and cut overgrown grass and bushes.
http://newspad-pacific.info/
></O