Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Americans warned about dengue fever



In Honduras, American Embassy has issued a caution about classic dengue and hemorrhagic dengue fever, which have killed 21 people in the country this year. Five more deaths are under examination.

There have
been 17,620 cases of classic dengue and 594 of the hemorrhagic type, the embassy said in a warning last week to U.S. citizens living in Honduras or planning travel to the country.Honduras affirmed a general crisis last month due to the mosquito-borne virus.

Certain countries in Central and South America as well as the Caribbean are reporting dengue activity, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said
in a June outbreak notice. In addition to Honduras, dengue has been reported in Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Peru and Puerto Rico.

Although dengue transmission often occurs in rural and urban areas, infections are reported most often in urban settings.In Honduras, the government reported that 85 percent of the hemorrhagic dengue cases occurred in the capital of Tegucigalpa.The Honduran government has begun a large fumigation effort in addition to public education.


The dengue fever virus cannot be spread directly from person to person and must be transmitted through the bite of an contaminated mosquito. There is no vaccine to protect against infection and no treatment for the disease.

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