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lazeeboy Star Member

lazeeboy

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There is not a single mosquito anywhere on Phuket, I've checked.

Oops You Missed one - the little buzzing bar-steward !!

in the bar area's not to bad ,if you stay in a good hotel they spray ,not a big problem but there here .

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chiang mai Star Member

chiang mai

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There is not a single mosquito anywhere on Phuket, I've checked.

Oops You Missed one - the little buzzing bar-steward !!

in the bar area's not to bad ,if you stay in a good hotel they spray ,not a big problem but there here .

Well which it, there or here. make up your mind! :o

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Rooo Star Member

Rooo

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........& they give you Dengue Fever :o...the little bastards!

Don't worry, here on samui I know only one farang that got dengue.

And hes been living here for eight years.

Well you don't know too many people then.I know of 4 people that have had dengue since June ( one of them my daughter ).It is in epidemic proportions all over Thailand & Asia.

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PoorSucker Star Member

PoorSucker

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Sorry to hear that. :o

I have spend four years of my life on this island, and have spoken to people that have been living here for 10-20 years.

All say that they only have heard about a few cases among farang.

This is people that live in the area Chaweng, Choengmon, Ban Rak.

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sbk Star Member

sbk

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Before everyone starts freaking out about Dengue being only on Koh Samui, lets review some facts about its prevalence in SE Asia:

New Delhi, 9 August, 2007: The World Health Organization Regional Office for South-East Asia (SEARO) is urging countries in the South-East Asia Region to take prompt action to prevent and contain outbreaks of dengue, a mosquito-borne viral illness.

The number of reported dengue cases has increased in Indonesia, Myanmar and Thailand compared to last year. Indonesia has twice the number of cases this year (compared to 45 777 cases during the same period in 2005). Myanmar and Thailand are seeing increases of 29% and 17 %, respectively, in the number of dengue cases over the same period.

Many other countries in Asia and the Pacific are already facing an unprecedented increase in dengue this year.

Experience from previous years shows that in countries such as India, including the capital, New Delhi, dengue outbreaks begin to increase from August onwards soon after the monsoons.

According to Regional Director of WHO South-East Asia, Dr Samlee Plianbangchang, “Dengue is a man-made problem related to human behaviour”, which is affected by “globalization, rapid unplanned and unregulated urban development, poor water storage and unsatisfactory sanitary conditions. These factors provide an increase in the breeding habitats of the mosquito.”

The dengue virus spreads through the bite of the infectious female Aedes mosquito, primarily Aedes aegypti, which breeds in artificial containers and improperly managed garbage where clean or clear water accumulates. Since dengue and dengue haemorrhagic fever are ecological diseases, prevention is the key to effective control. Surveillance of vectors and the disease are both very critical because outbreaks of dengue are generally preceded by increased vector populations in local areas.

“Vector control, such as the control of mosquito breeding in domestic and peri-domestic areas, is imperative for prevention of dengue. This requires the full participation and mobilization of the community at the individual and household level,” said Dr Jai P. Narain, Director of Communicable Diseases for WHO SEARO.

Individuals, families, community support groups, self-help groups, NGOs, local authorities and departments of health need to work together to address the current situation because dengue is everyone’s concern. Individuals can take simple steps such as emptying all water containers at least once a week and ridding their surroundings of containers that collect rain water, which will help to prevent the laying of eggs by the mosquitoes that are the dengue vector.

Aedes mosquitoes bite only in the daytime, unlike malaria-carrying mosquitoes. Often persons infected with dengue suffer from mild flu-like symptoms, and may not realise they have the disease. Aside from joint pain, dengue victims experience rashes, nausea and headaches. But some also suffer a potentially fatal form called dengue haemorrhagic fever, which causes internal bleeding and circulatory failure. Aspirin should be avoided in cases of dengue fever, as it is known to increase the tendency to bleed. Physicians and clinicians are urged to follow national guidelines for case management of dengue and dengue haemorrhagic fever.

No vaccine has yet been found for any of the four strains of dengue virus, and none of the four confer immunity from the others.

For any clarification or additional information, please contact Ms Vismita Gupta-Smith, Public Information and Advocacy officer, phone: 91-11-23370971 and Mobile: 91- 9871329861 Email: [email protected]. Ms Shima Roy, Communication Officer, Department of Communicable Diseases, at telephone: 011 23309 591, mobile: 99106 99079 (email [email protected])

Source: WHO SEARO www.searo.who.int/en/Section316/Section503/Section2358_13463.htm

Dengue fever is everywhere in the world in warm climates, even occurring in the southern USA. It is closely tied to rainfall amounts, apparently.

Asia braces for new dengue outbreak

Dengue has now become a major health issue in Singapore and the government has stepped up its public awareness campaign and efforts to eradicate mosquito breeding grounds. -- ST PHOTO: REUTERS

MANILA - FROM Singapore to Cambodia public health officials are warning of a possible epidemic of dengue fever in Asia this year.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) believes 2007 could be on a par with 1998, when nearly 1,500 people died in Asia of the mosquito-borne disease.

This year dengue has already killed more than 1,000 people in Indonesia alone. In many other places the death and infection rates through June had already surpassed the totals for 2006.

'There is a strong possibility this year could be one of the worst,' said advisor for malaria and other diseases at the WHO's regional office, Mr John Ehrenberg in the Philippines.

'We are seeing major spikes in reported cases around the region,' he added.

Dengue fever is nowhere near as deadly as malaria, which kills an estimated 2.7 million people around the world every year.

But there is no known cure or vaccine to fight dengue fever, which is transmitted by a bite of the white-spotted mosquito known as Aedes aegypti.

Officials say the best way to fight the spread of dengue is to control the mosquito's breeding grounds - areas where water collects and stagnates - but that can prove difficult once the annual rains begin.

The early arrival of the rainy season in much of Asia has been blamed for the upsurge in outbreaks this year, experts said.

'The warmer the temperature the greater the risk of a serious outbreak,' Mr Ehrenberg said.

Throughout Asia, cases of the disease are soaring. Thailand has recorded 19,000 cases and 18 deaths for the first six months of the year.

In Cambodia, deaths this year have already eclipsed fatalities in 2006 as the country battles one of the worst outbreaks of the disease in a decade.

Some 182 deaths have been recorded for the six months of the year out of nearly 15,000 cases, said director of the health ministry's dengue programme Ngan Chantha. Last year 152 deaths were reported.

Vietnam has reported almost 20,000 cases with 21 deaths, seven more than in the same period last year, the health ministry said.

While poorer countries with less developed public health systems are prone to dengue outbreaks, rich countries like Singapore are not immune.

Dengue has now become a major health issue in Singapore and the government has stepped up its public awareness campaign and efforts to eradicate mosquito breeding grounds.

In Malaysia the Health Ministry's director of disease control, Hasan Abdul Rahman, said 44 people had died in the first four months of 2007 from 16,214 cases reported, compared to 21 deaths and 10,244 cases in the same period last year.

One country bucking the regional trend is the Philippines, where deaths in the first half of the year are down from 139 last year to 81 this year.

But officials warn that dengue fever can spread quickly.

According to the WHO, only a handful of countries had experienced epidemics before 1970. But now the disease is endemic in more than 100 countries around the world. -- AFP

Source: www.straitstimes.com/Latest+News/Asia/STIStory_141771.html

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elkangorito Platinum Member

elkangorito

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I had a dose of Dengue about 3 months ago...very nasty. Ended up spending 3 days in hospital.

I was lucky because I got to hospital in time. I was on the verge of haemorrhagic fever...potentially fatal. But don't panic. The symptoms are easy to spot;

1] Extreme lethargy.

2] After a day or 2, a red rash may appear anywhere & everywhere (red blotches on your skin).

3] Pain or discomfort behind your eyes, when your move your eyes.

4] A high fever (mine was about 39.5 - I have a clinical mercury thermometer).

If you have these symptoms, go to hospital immediately.

The Dengue mossies are easy to identify - their abdomen has black & white vertical stripes. The Dengue mossie is mainly active during the day.

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SamuiBond Advanced Member

SamuiBond

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You are in risk (in Samui) of getting dengue if you go in to jungle in the middle of the island. I don't know how these little fockers pick their spots but there must be ingridient they need to become Dengue positive or something (Ebola - Zairest deepest jungles).

Other than that you're safe here. Koh Phanang has had multiple cases during the year and if you've heard someone getting it here, they are most like just coming from there. After the rains here's fair share of buzzing but nothing too grand. But as you know, in Phuket they hang in the bars - Thai style:0

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