(Dominica News Online)
Health officials are reporting a decrease in the number of dengue fever cases in Dominica and it is said that the country is “out of the woods” in terms of a dengue outbreak.
Chief Medical Officer (CMO), Dr. David Johnson, told Dominica News Online (DNO) during an interview on Tuesday, that for the month of January 2020, there have been only three (3) cases of dengue fever and one child has been admitted to the Princess Margaret Hospital (PMH).
In October 2019, Health officials reported an outbreak of dengue fever in Dominica and according to statistics provided by Dr. Johnson, the number of hospital admissions associated with the disease had been climbing since the start of September 2019. He said then that while there were five cases that required intensive care, no one had died.
Johnson said the Ministry of Health wants to ensure that no one dies as a result of the disease.
“As we speak we have only seen three cases of dengue for the month of January so far,” he revealed. “The evidence that we have seems to indicate that we are out of the woods in terms of the dengue outbreak.”
According to Dr. Johnson, around 51 percent of the cases of dengue were children between the ages of 1 and 15 years.
“That seems to be consistent to what is going on with the rest of the region as well,” he stated.
He went on to say that there were 12 severe cases of people with dengue fever admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at the PMH.
The CMO further explained that during the period of July 2019 to the end of December 2019, there have been about 200 cases admitted to the hospital.
He said a number of measures including clean-up campaigns have been undertaken in hotspots where a lot of breeding of mosquitos is taking place.
“Our main focus was source reduction,” Dr. Johnson indicated. “And we did a lot of work in regards to source reduction, particularly around our port of entry, because during the time we had a lot of persons coming to Dominica.”
He said that the emphasis was placed on eliminating or reducing mosquito breeding, particularly around the ports of entry adding that the Ministry of Health continues to advise the general public to reduce the breeding sites of mosquitoes.
Dengue is a flu-like illness that affects infants, young children and adults. Symptoms typically begin four to ten days after infection and include a high fever, headache, vomiting, muscle and joint pains, and a characteristic skin rash.
This illness can evolve to severe dengue, characterized by potentially deadly complications, such as internal haemorrhaging, intense and continuous abdominal pain or tenderness and persistent vomiting. In some cases, Dengue may be severe and cause death.
Anyone presenting with some or all the symptoms are asked to seek immediate medical attention.
Dengue remains a global health problem and like Zika and Chikungunya, there is no specific treatment for the disease.
The Aedes aegypti mosquito vector, which spreads Dengue, is present in all Caribbean territories.
The measures used for controlling the spread of Dengue are the same as those for Zika and Chikungunya as these diseases are also transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquito.
The most effective way to avoid becoming ill from viruses spread by mosquitoes is to prevent mosquito bites.
Research carried out by CARPHA and the Pan American Health Organization/World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO) show that drums and tires are the main mosquito breeding sources in our countries.
Many health organizations suggest the following to protect yourself from dengue:
- Wear long-sleeve shirts and long pants.
- Treat clothes with repellents like permethrin.
- Use mosquito repellent.
- Consider using mosquito netting if you will be in an area with many mosquitoes.
- Make sure windows and doors screens are closed to avoid allowing mosquitoes into enclosed spaces.
- Avoid areas with standing water.
- Ensure that there is no stagnant water in your home
- Cover all stored water especially in drums
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