Big Jump In Dengue Cases Raises Fears In Thailand

[george]

Big jump in dengue cases raises fears in Thailand

BANGKOK: -- A rapid increase in dengue fever cases over the past two months in Thailand have become a major concern of the Public Health Ministry, which already warned of theworsening of the situation.

In January and February this year, the number of dengue fever patients jumps to 2,769, a 75 percent increase over the same period last year.

"The sharp increase warns that the situation could get much worse during the rainy season," the ministry's permanent secretaryVichai Tienthavorn on Monday was quoted by The Nation newspaper assaying.

Dengue fever, transmitted to humans by the mosquito, is one major public health concern internationally and also the leading cause of hospitalization in Asia.

Vichai said doctors were instructed to keep a close watch on patients with high fever for more than three consecutive days without developing any flu symptoms.

The Medical Sciences Department has also been ordered to monitor the dengue fever virus which mutates every few years.

The department head Paijit Warachit said the Central region andNortheast could be hardest hit by the disease where a new strain of virus had been found more often than elsewhere.

A dengue pandemic first broke out in Thailand in 1958. The government's target this year is to keep the cases below 31,500.

--Agencies 2005-03-21

[george]

Thailand warns of dengue fever outbreak

BANGKOK: -- The Thai government has warned of a possible major outbreak of dengue fever this year as a result of a new strain found last year.

The country's central and north-eastern regions are expected to be worst affected by the new dengue virus, dubbed the 'fourth strain', according to the Permanent Secretary for Public Health, Dr. Vichai Tienthavorn.

There have been nearly 3,000 cases of dengue reported, including two deaths, in the first two months of this year.

This is a 75 percent increase on the same period last year, he said.

This has raised concerns of a potential outbreak during the rainy season in the next few months.

Local health workers have been instructed to beef up measures to prevent the possible outbreak.

The government also plans to launch a campaign to make Thais aware of the danger of an increase in the disease.

The Public Health Ministry aims to keep the number of dengue patients to no more than 50 per 100,000 population this year.

That would mean no more than 31,500 people across the country.

The number of dengue fever patients has risen in recent years, from less than 20,000 cases in the year 2000 to more than 110,000 in the last two years.

The number of cases found in the previous three months of a year indicates the number likely to occur the following year, according to the Director-General of the Department of Medical Sciences, Dr. Paijit Warachit.

Last year there were more than 7,500 victims of dengue fever between October and December -- the highest in the past few years, raising fears that there will be a serious outbreak in 2005, he said.

--TNA 2005-03-21

[Blackandwhite]

How do you say Dengue fever in THAI. I want to explain to my wife so she can understand what to look out for when she takes our daughter to Buriram in April

Cheers

[BlackJack]

unfortunately In the world around 2 million people die each year from mosquito related bites and consequent sickness

Most are children

also more people die from donkey related incidents than in a plane crashes

[RamTodatry]

Another epidemic to worry about !!!

[Richard Hall]

How do you say Dengue fever in THAI. I want to explain to my wife so she can understand what to look out for when she takes our daughter to Buriram in April

Cheers

There is the medical term

kai dengeu = in Thai script ไข้เดงกิว

or more commonly known as

kai lueard og (= haemorrhagic fever) = in Thai script ไข้เลือดออก

[DeDanan]

Hi all,

Is there any vaccination available for dengue fever?

Regards,

DeDanan

[Blackandwhite]

I spoke to my GP here in the UK. He said there is no jab available against Dengue Fever, Just care should be taken when there are mosquitos are around as they are the carrier of the bug.

[johnh101]

http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs117/en/

All you need to know from the WHO.

[THAIDOG]

Big jump in dengue cases raises fears in Thailand 

    BANGKOK: --  A rapid increase in dengue fever cases over the past two months in Thailand have become a major concern of the Public Health Ministry, which already warned of theworsening of the situation.

    In January and February this year, the number of dengue fever patients jumps to 2,769, a 75 percent increase over the same period last year.

    "The sharp increase warns that the situation could get much worse during the rainy season," the ministry's permanent secretaryVichai Tienthavorn on Monday was quoted by The Nation newspaper assaying.

    Dengue fever, transmitted to humans by the mosquito, is one major public health concern internationally and also the leading cause of hospitalization in Asia.

    Vichai said doctors were instructed to keep a close watch on patients with high fever for more than three consecutive days without developing any flu symptoms.

    The Medical Sciences Department has also been ordered to monitor the dengue fever virus which mutates every few years.

    The department head Paijit Warachit said the Central region andNortheast could be hardest hit by the disease where a new strain of virus had been found more often than elsewhere.

    A dengue pandemic first broke out in Thailand in 1958. The government's target this year is to keep the cases below 31,500.

--Agencies 2005-03-21

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

WOW!! So that is what has made me so sick with fever that was so impossible to beat.. it whipped my arse for almost a week..I could do nothing.. I never felt that bad in years.. today I feel much better but for almost 8 days I was crippled with fever 102+.... it was horrible... ThaiDog

[Chutney]

I had it 2 years back. You feel like your dying and wish you were.

The most important treatment is keeping the temperature down and fluids up.

I was hospitalised and the main treatment was a drip and pain management. If you think your child or anyone has it and hospital isn't an option keep them sponged down with cold water. Feed them paracetamol and plenty of water. Rehydration sachets too if you have them.

It's the striped daytime biting Mosquito which carries it.

[benlee53]

I'm not sure if its what i have now or not i

got mositio bite a fews nights ago and have been coughing now i have a real high fever mee kai mak mak

[mogoso]

http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs117/en/

All you need to know from the WHO.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Would not the use of DDT (as much as the enviormentalists would decry it) save hundreds of thousands of lives per year, and decrease illinesses. It could be utilized over a short term to get outbreaks under control, then cease its use till necessary. I love my raptors which in the US were most affected by the use of DDT, but aren't peoples lifes more important?

[joefromdc]

I'm not sure if its what i have now or not i

got mositio bite a fews nights ago and have been coughing now i have a real high fever mee kai mak mak

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I'm pretty sure the dengue fever carrier mosquito is NOT the nocturnal variety.

Worry about day-time bites, nocturnal mosi's will only give you malaria...

j.

[capt_canada42]

Its interesting that they were able to get it under control in Malaysia years ago by not allowing standing water around people homes and officials went around and enforced it so that there breeding places.

But here we are in the land of the free so no one cares enough to try and put any rules in place or educate people to do it them selves with out rules.

The same as no one wants to teach any one not to pass on turns with there cars or drink and drive( oops that must have offended most of the falangs the drinking and driving that is)

[cobra]

Reducing the amount of exposed skin couldn't hurt, long sleeve shirts, trousers, etc,

That and a little splash of bug dope on the hands and face is pretty much all the protection there is until vaccine(s) are developed, if ever.

[sand]

I'm not sure if its what i have now or not i

got mositio bite a fews nights ago and have been coughing now i have a real high fever mee kai mak mak

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

don't worry benlee,

(much)

your symptoms sound like my first batch of flu since I have been here. High fever for a few days, on and off, (thought was food poisoning at first but nothing happening at either 'end', so no), aches + pains etc, then that goes after a week to a cough that gets worse at night, and then just the odd cough and phlegm globules, now my 3rd week of that!

Oh how I miss the crappy 3 day british cold!!

Also if anyone has any URL's etc that can point me the right way to things you can catch from insects here, and which ones bite would be helpful.

Just returned from malaysia , and had various insects running over my towel on thr ground at the grand prix. Hopping frog like insects to catterpillars .

what ones are harmful ?? I havent a clue ?

same here in thailand ??

help

I just know I hate mosquitoes and this denge fever does not help ?

cheers

sand in hot and clammy BKK cough cough.

[Billion]

Reducing the amount of exposed skin couldn't hurt, long sleeve shirts, trousers, etc,

That and a little splash of bug dope on the hands and face is pretty much all the protection there is until vaccine(s) are developed, if ever. 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

cobra you got it! The most important thing is to cover your body parts with

cloth and I mean the whole body .

I've seen too many people without long sleeve shirts, trousers, etc,

and they all have mosquito bites all over the body, of cause they get sick!

I have a few bites my self but not sick.

[dr_Pat_Pong]

I'm not sure if its what i have now or not i

got mositio bite a fews nights ago and have been coughing now i have a real high fever mee kai mak mak

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Get to the doctor or get one to call on you.

[taxexile]

Dengue Fever

WHAT IS DENGUE FEVER?

Dengue fever is an infectious disease carried by mosquitoes and caused by any of four related dengue viruses. This disease used to be called break-bone fever because it sometimes causes severe joint and muscle pain. Health experts have known about dengue fever for more than 200 years.

Dengue fever is found mostly during and shortly after the rainy season in tropical and subtropical areas of

Africa

Southeast Asia and China

India

Middle East

Caribbean and Central and South America

Australia and the South and Central Pacific

An epidemic in Hawaii in 2001 is a reminder that many states in the United States are susceptible to dengue epidemics because they harbor the particular types of mosquitoes that transmit it.

The World Health Organization estimates 50 million cases of dengue infection occur each year. This includes 100 to 200 cases reported annually to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), mostly in people who have recently traveled abroad. From 1977 to 1994, U.S. health care workers reported to CDC 2,248 cases of dengue that had been imported into this country. Many more cases probably go unreported because some doctors do not recognize the disease.

During the last part of the 20th century, cases of dengue began to increase in many tropical regions of the world. Epidemics also began to occur more frequently, and to be more severe. In addition to typical dengue, a severe influenza-like disease-dengue hemorrhagic fever-also has been increasing in many parts of the world.

HOW IS DENGUE FEVER TRANSMITTED?

People get dengue virus infections from the bite of an infected Aedes mosquito. Mosquitoes become infected when they bite infected humans, and later transmit infection to other people they bite. The two main species of mosquito, Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus, have been responsible for all cases of dengue transmitted in this country.

WHAT KIND OF VIRUS CAUSES DENGUE FEVER?

Dengue fever can be caused by any one of four types of dengue virus: DEN-1, DEN-2, DEN-3, and DEN-4. A person can be infected by at least two, if not all four types at different times during a life span, but only once by the same type.

WHAT ARE THE SYMPTOMS OF DENGUE FEVER?

Symptoms of typical uncomplicated dengue usually start with fever within 5 to 6 days after a person has been bitten by an infected mosquito.

High fever, up to 105 degrees Fahrenheit

Severe headache

Retro-orbital (behind the eye) pain

Severe joint and muscle pain

Nausea and vomiting

Rash

The rash may appear over most of the body 3 to 4 days after the fever begins. A second rash may appear later in the disease.

Interestingly, most children infected with dengue virus never develop typical symptoms.

HOW IS DENGUE FEVER DIAGNOSED?

A doctor or other health care worker can diagnose dengue fever by doing a blood test. The test can show whether the blood sample contains dengue virus or antibodies to the virus. In epidemics, dengue is often clinically diagnosed by typical signs and symptoms.

HOW IS DENGUE FEVER TREATED?

There is no specific treatment for dengue fever, and most people recover completely within 2 weeks. To help with recovery, health care experts recommend

Getting plenty of bed rest.

Drinking lots of fluids.

Taking medicine to reduce fever.

CDC advises people with dengue fever not to take aspirin. Acetaminophen or other over-the-counter pain-reducing medicines are safe for most people.

HOW CAN DENGUE FEVER BE PREVENTED?

The best way to prevent dengue fever is to take special precautions to avoid contact with mosquitoes. Several dengue vaccines are being developed, but none is likely to be licensed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in the next few years.

When outdoors in an area where dengue fever has been found,

Use a mosquito repellant containing DEET.

Dress in protective clothing—long-sleeved shirts, long pants, socks, and shoes.

Because Aedes mosquitoes usually bite during the day, be sure to use precautions especially during early morning hours before daybreak and in the late afternoon before dark.

Other precautions include

Keep unscreened windows and doors closed.

Keep window and door screens repaired.

Get rid of areas where mosquitoes breed, such as standing water in flower pots or discarded tires.

CAN DENGUE FEVER LEAD TO OTHER HEALTH PROBLEMS?

Most people who develop dengue fever recover completely within two weeks. Some, however, may go through several weeks of feeling tired and/or depressed.

Others develop severe bleeding problems. This complication, dengue hemorrhagic fever, is a very serious illness which can lead to shock (very low blood pressure) and is sometimes fatal, especially in children and young adults.

NIAID RESEARCH

Scientists supported by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) are trying to develop a vaccine against dengue by modifying an existing vaccine for yellow fever. Researchers in NIAID laboratories in Bethesda, Maryland, are using weakened and harmless versions of dengue viruses as potential vaccine candidates against dengue and related viruses.

Other researchers supported by NIAID are investigating ways to prevent dengue viruses from reproducing inside mosquitoes.

Because dengue virus has only recently emerged as a growing global threat, scientists know little about how the virus infects cells and causes disease. New research is beginning to shed light on how the virus interacts with humans — how it damages cells and how the human immune system responds to dengue virus invasion.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

1600 Clifton Road

Atlanta, GA 30333

1-888-232-3228

http://www.cdc.gov

U.S. National Library of Medicine

8600 Rockville Pike

Bethesda, MD 20894

301-496-6308

http://medlineplus.gov

World Health Organization

Avenue Appia 20

1211 Geneva 27

Switzerland

41-22-791-21-11

http://www.who.int

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Edited March 22, 2005 by taxexile

[tallthai]

Dengue Fever in Thai is (phoenetically)

Kai Leuat Auck or

Fever Blood Out

[mraloha]

KUDOS TO ALL THE CONTRIBUTERS TO THIS FORUM ON DENGUE FEVER. WHEN I READ A FORUM LIKE THIS I REALIZE THE VALUE IN ONGOING FORUM BLOGGING. ESPECIALLY FOR THOSE OF US WHO LIVE IN THAILAND.

[pedro01]

Any info on the areas in Thailand where Dengue fever is most prevalent.

Also - did I spell prevalent right ?

[moebius]

For the post regarding the use of DDT and other pesticides:

No need to kill rampantly. DDT is avoided for more reasons than the deaths of vicious flying chickens.

The current favorite in use is Malathion spraying and using larvaecide programs to kill the little biters before they go airborn. Malathion itself is in debate, just as any insecticide, herbacide or pesticide will be. Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada is well known for it's dense mosquito populations and it's programs to fight back (I had a lot of flat tires when I was there and I blame the bugs!';0)

Standing water is the main culprit. In Bangkok what I notice most is the non-flowing water in the canals and the flurry of flights over sewer outlets throughout the city. Same with most other places I've been. This indicates to me the flow of water is not enough to offset larvae pools.

Mosquitoes go through four stages in their life cycles – egg, larva, pupa, and adult - with complete cycles taking as little as four days or as long as one month, depending on the temperature. Cities, states and provinces with advanced (and ultimately more economical) programs combine spraying (malathion, etc.) with larvaeciding, dunking (oils and suffocants used on top of water) and water control programs to control mosquito populations. Some methods are more environmentally friendly than others.

Not just North America either. One province in Vietnam reduced its dengue fever count by close to 70 per cent in one year utilizing water control and mosquito awareness only (clothing, times of day activity, etc., ....wish I still had the URL).

;0)

[moebius]

The prevailing spelling of prevalent is prevalent. Yes.

[dr_Pat_Pong]

The prevailing spelling of prevalent is prevalent. Yes.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Isn't it PREVALENT

[bina]

hi, well,

we are supposedly in for an epidemic of nile fever from mossies here in the holyland cause the water drainage etc programs ran out of money.... also talking about malarie again here, and some other mosquito thing, not dengue though

same same

in our own sewage treatment and decorative pools we use gambusa fish (dont know what they are in english but they are voracious mossie eaters and thrive in any water and people dont eat them as theya re small),they are very hardy too

no waste tires laying around; buckets are turned over, etc... its a private war i wage at the park with my thai worker, to please keep all empty buckets etc open side down, put drain holes in animal feed boxes etc.when we use tires as holders etc we fill with straw or sand or puncture as well... we dont spray on our kibbutz as we are fairly green but we do have a water patrol person whose job it is to check and see who waters in middle of day and too much, and who has stuff laying around that is collecting water and if there are mosquitos larvae etc; ; outlying areas (moshavim) dont do that and alltheir mossies, and flies, come to us bringing their diseases....

dont know about those mosquito repellant electronic scent things; my kids are terribly allergic to them and to the creams and sprays ; may actually go and get nets like the one that i brought back from thailand... the kids like them, and they get bitten like anything

[taxexile]

Isn't it PREVALENT

that post was irrelevant

[DaveYo]

Hi all;

You guys have to be really joking of telling those who live here in Thailand or some person saying on how to control this outbreak of Dengue!!!!

First off, Thailand is like a land in sitting water. Everywhere you look you see RICE PADDIES!!!!!! Ah, nice breeding ground for the squitoes. Then you see Thais watering the roads for some stupid reason cause they don't like dust!!!!!!, so they waste water. Next, then you see Thais have their water troughs inside the house GALLONS OF IT, and also their water tanks outside of the house.

Now you try telling Thai people to eliminate standing water, and they will use a machete on you and ooooooooops I got to vamoosa outa here NOW!!!!!!

Then you see Thai people pour soapy water and what ever else on to the roads daily, and then they have ditches upon ditches of WEEDY FIELDS fully soaked with water and they contain every poison snake or toady and fish you can find. No Thai person wants to go inside the bush to clean up. They use bulldozers but oooooooooopps cannot do cause it is a swamp. Then they do not ALLOW CHAIN SAWS HERE, cause they are afraid of their RAIN FOREST GETTING WIPED OUT, and who would want to even bother cutting their trees here in the first place since it is heavily infected with TERMITES AND RED ANTS!!!!!!!! Fire cannot do cause too much water, so they say FORGET IT!!!!!!!!!.

Understand

Then try telling some Thai person who got the ROOSTERS and the HENS next door to you to clean up their own crap and dung and etc, and try to contain BIRD FLU is next to impossible in THAILAND and ELSEWHERE in ASIA.

Most Thais will look at you like this-----> at first and if you keep bugging them then you got machete and this coming at you--->

So DENGUE AND BIRD FLU IS HERE TO STAY FOLKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Daveyo

Edited March 22, 2005 by DaveYo

[DaveYo]

Oh by the way I forgot to mention to you too, most Thai people love to live like it is still 1860 and not the present day.

They love to live backwards, and not forwards. Trust me. So the best you can do is TAKE CARE OF YOUR OWN SELF, and the ###### with them and do the best you can for within your means and do the best yourself both in hygiene and cleaniless and steer clear away from dirty food marts and go buy things or foods in a major shopping spot. As of getting Thai tools and or equipment, please do expect that those tools are meant to last only a good 3 months, even their washing and drying machines unless you get a Hoover Set and spend 55,000 baht (for both), then you will be OK in that department. As of tools to last prepare to spend top dollar period and get those made either in Europe or in America. If you buy it made in Thailand, sigh, well to you but the Thai people look at you like this---------------> knowing what really is going on.

Daveyo