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CAMBODIA-DENGUE
Cambodia reports sharp rise in dengue fever cases, killing 10
PHNOM PENH, Aug. 3, 2018 (BSS/XINHUA) – Cambodia had reported a total of
5,284 dengue fever cases in the first six months of 2018, a 234 percent rise
compared with 1,580 cases over the same period last year, according to a
dengue fever report on Friday.
The incidence rate was 31.7 cases out of 100,000 people, said the report
released by the National Center for Parasitology, Entomology and Malaria
Control.
The report said the dengue virus killed 10 people during the January-June
period this year, up from only one death over the same period last year.
Huy Rekol, director of the National Center for Parasitology, Entomology
and Malaria Control, said dengue fever cases spiked according to the seasonal
variation of the climate and over 71 percent of the patients were children
aged between five and 14 years old.
“The fatal cases occurred (this year) because parents had sent their ill
children to hospitals late, or sought medical treatment at private places
that made the condition of the disease become more severe, so when they
transferred their severely ill kids to public hospitals, it was too late,” he
said in the report.
He added that parents should send their children to the nearest public
hospital within 48 hours after they suspect that their kids are infected with
a dengue virus.
Dengue is a viral disease transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes. The disease
causes an acute illness that usually follows symptoms such as headache,
fever, exhaustion, severe muscle and joint pain, swollen glands, vomiting and
rash.
In Cambodia, the peak of dengue epidemic period is in the rainy season
from May to October.
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