GUYANA
DENGUE SURVEILLANCE REMAINS HIGH – RAMSAMMY BY STABROEK STAFF | AUGUST 20, 2010
Minister of Health Dr. Leslie Ramsammy says surveillance for dengue fever remains high and he insists that the cases being recorded are within the normal levels and “nothing unusual”.
The ministry has been unable to verify any dengue death within recent weeks, Ramsammy said, noting that people are speculating about the illness.
He repeated that if anyone is out there saying Guyanese have died from dengue fever recently they need to produce the evidence to the ministry.
“There are reports out there yet we have no such information to date about unusually high numbers and or related deaths.
Any hospital with a recorded death outside of the public health system needs to provide us with the data”, the minister stated.[...]
He said communities need to be onboard and help the ministry to control the illness, adding that it starts with individual action at home. He referred to basins of waters left at residences and drains which are clogged.
Ramsammy noted that dengue is in the region and in the country and according to him, the cases will continue to be recorded because of the climatic conditions.
He noted that the health sector is weighing whether to increase testing for dengue.
To date, there have been around 1000 cases of dengue fever compared to 760 for the same period last year. The minister has acknowledged an increase, but insisted that it is not alarming.
DENGUE REMAINS A THREAT BY VANESSA NARINE,GUYANACHRONICLEONLINE.COM, FRIDAY, 13 AUGUST 2010
…CURRENT TRANSMISSION LEVELS SAME AS LAST YEAR’S
Health Minister Dr. Leslie Ramsammy has said Guyana is seeing dengue transmission levels that are similar to those of 2009, but maintains that dengue remains a threat. “We have had 200 verified cases and suspicious cases are about 1,000, which is the same level as last year…we have transmission of dengue every day,” he said.The Health Minister said everyone needs to do his part since the Ministry cannot do it alone.
To date the Ministry of Health has issued advisories and has upped its efforts to detect incidents of dengue fever.
“Any diagnosis of dengue has to be reported…there have been no formal reports of death…we are testing more than ever before,” Ramsammy said.
He explained that the private health care providers, as well as some public centres, use what is called the ‘rapid test’.But the Minister said this is not as effective as the ELISA test.
Ramsammy said only about 12,000 of these tests are currently in supply, and because of the high cost associated with its procurement, health workers have been given specific guidelines for recognizing candidates for the tests.
The tests are done at the National Public Health Reference Laboratory (NPHRL).
Steps to facilitate vector control have also been taken by the Health Ministry and Ramsammy stressed that this is the only way to control dengue.
One of the more successful initiatives, he said is a new programme which focuses on the elimination of the Aedes aegypti mosquito, the vector of dengue fever.
The BTi (Bacillus thuringiensis) initiative is a biological method of control. The bacillus has a preference for the larvae of the mosquito. In Guyana’s case, BTi is expected to be used to treat the network of ponds and canals in the country, some of which are stagnant thus ideal for mosquitoes to breed.
“We have this programme running in Mahaicony and Bush Lot. The preliminary results are that the BTi will work,” Ramsammy said.
He added that after the relevant analysis is done, this initiative will be rolled out across the country.
Awareness
The Health Minister observed that coupled with the work of the Ministry, Guyanese must be aware of what they can do to play their part in reducing transmission of dengue.
This includes maintaining clean surroundings, turning pails and watering cans over and storing them under shelter, removing old tyres from the yard which may collect water and providing breeding space for the mosquitoes, and disposing of garbage in the appropriate manner.[...]
Increased dengue testing to be mulled – Ramsammy byStabroek staff | August 12, 2010
Dengue fever is a public health problem which needs to be addressed and the health sector here has to consider whether to increase testing for dengue, Health Minister Dr. Leslie Ramsammy said yesterday.
There has been an increase in the number of reported cases of dengue in the country over the last four years, he said, but stressed that the rise was not rapid. Ramsammy said increased capacity for testing is reflected in the cases being captured, but also pointed out that there is a genuine increase.
Dengue is a reportable disease, Ramsammy said yesterday, noting that every health official in the sector who is treating someone for dengue has a duty to report it. He said after the cases are reported the sector has a responsibility to conduct a verification process.
Reports of two recent dengue deaths have not been verified, he said yesterday, adding that the sector is aware of the reports but not of any actual dengue deaths.
The sector received an additional 12,000 tests for dengue this week. Ramsammy said the health sector’s budget would be consumed if every reported case of fever is tested for dengue. “I hope we don’t have an outbreak, but we do have transmitting dengue in the country”, he said.
He said some health officials are on the ground following the patterns and distributing products to help fight dengue in the city. Ramsammy said anyone who is saying they treated a recent dengue case and the patient subsequently died “must provide that evidence to us”.
Dengue surveillance in the health sector requires that every case being treated is reported. Ramsammy went to the figures and noted that based on the information provided over the last three years, weeks 1-24 are the weeks when the highest number of dengue cases is usually reported in the country then the numbers go down. For this year, he said the cases extended to the 26th week before the numbers took a dive.
“If people are not reporting dengue cases to us then they are doing a disservice to all the citizens of Guyana because how much we invest in a problem would depend on what the problem is”, he added. He said that if the reported numbers “go out of the roof” then it is likely that testing would increase across the country.
To date, he said the sector has spent three times more on dengue testing than it has in previous years. Ramsammy added that it is important to stay on top of the illness because the problem can get more serious.
THERE IS A REAL THREAT OF DENGUE AND OTHER HEALTH CONCERNS – KING | POSTED ON 07 AUGUST 2010
- COUNCIL SENSITISES RESIDENTS ABOUT POTENTIAL HAZARDS
Massive health threats loom in the city of Georgetown, a development which stems from the current garbage crisis which persists following the decision by waste disposal contractors to withdraw their service from the Mayor and City Council of Georgetown (M&CC). According to Public Relations Officer, Royston King, dengue fever is not the least of the threats that have the potential of invading the city.
He related during an interview with this newspaper that the situation of garbage accumulation in various parts of the city and the potential breeding places of mosquitoes, particularly the Aedes aegypti, which is known to carry the dengue virus, is of major concern to the municipality.
It was against this background, King said, that the Municipal Chief Public Health Officer, Kenneth Stephens, had engaged residents from various sections of the city yesterday about dealing with the way they deal with their garbage.
“He spoke to them about the way old tyres are stored…Tyres that have been abandoned have the capacity to store water and as you know the Aedes Aegypti mosquitoes can breed in such circumstances…they can breed in black storage tanks, old tins, coconut shells, drink cans…” As such it is crucial, King said that the support of citizens be solicited if the situation is to be adequately addressed.
The Ministry of Health just recently issued an advisory detailing how persons could protect themselves from the dengue-carrying mosquito. According to the advisory, dengue fever is a disease caused by a virus carried by the Aedes aegypti mosquito. Persons are being urged to get rid of the breeding places of mosquitoes in and around their home by covering all water tanks, barrels, drains, storage containers and garbage bins with tightly fitted covers or with wire mesh. In addition flower pots, vases and other unused containers should be emptied and scrubbed at least once a week to destroy mosquito eggs. Eggs, the advisory noted, can hatch into larvae in three to six days.
Further persons are being urged to place all garbage into waste receptacles and are encouraged to sleep under bed nets for their protection. Additionally, the use of mosquito coils and repellents could prove to be important in ensuring one’s protection. “There is a real threat of dengue and other public health concerns, so we are encouraging people to do the right thing.
We have also distributed information and have asked citizens to cooperate with us…We got some fair response and we are very happy with that,” King asserted. The sensitisation move yesterday took on an integrated approach as several departments of the municipality were involved and focused on various aspects of the exercise.
This approach, according to King, was geared at helping the council to mobilise more resources and gather critical data on local communities in the city.
Areas that were targeted yesterday included Charlestown, Agricola, Campbellville, Kitty, Newtown and La Penitence. The move also sought to involve members of the private sector and non-governmental organisations and other community groups.
And there are plans that the sensitisation venture will continue indefinitely, King disclosed.
“We may continue for about two or three months until we would have saturated the city with enough information about the proper disposal of refuse and how they should deal with what is happening now in the city.”
One doctor explained that all of these symptoms are those associated with dengue fever. This newspaper was told too that there have been an alarming number of tests done and these revealed that persons were suffering with dengue fever.
According to reports from the private clinics, some persons are overlooking the symptoms and are treating themselves with common flu medication instead of getting the test done and proper medication.
Reports are, too, that the public hospitals are doing the dengue fever tests but results are made available some two weeks later.
“By this time a person can become gravely ill. That is why so many people are turning up at the private clinics to do the slide test which is also effective and treatment can be administered in a timely manner,” one doctor said.
When asked what may be the cause for the increase in numbers of these flu like symptoms, one doctor said the current state of the city.
“The poor drainage and the garbage around the city, we need to continue with the fogging around the city, all these factors are contributing to these illnesses.”
Checks around at Health Centres and hospitals proved that there is a large number of persons visiting with flu like symptoms as well as vomiting and diarrhea.
One patient at the Georgetown Public Hospital who spoke to this newspaper yesterday said she has been getting severe headaches, pains in her joints and muscles and fever.
She said after spending several hours waiting to see a doctor she was merely told that is was a virus, and given some pain relievers and Panadol syrup.
Port health at Brazil border not functioning as it should by Stabroek staff | June 26, 2010
Disease control and other related functions are practically non-existent at Guyana’s border with Brazil, where the Port Health Authority (PHA) office remains mostly closed[...]
Given reports of an outbreak of Yellow Fever in Brazil and an outbreak of Dengue in Guyana and the fact that these diseases are both transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, the source said, “The Port Health Authority will therefore be useful in observing travellers from both sides so as to isolate them and refer them for the relevant treatment. The last thing we want here in Guyana is a Yellow Fever epidemic.”
THING YOU DID NOT KNOW ABOUT MOSQUITOES.... It would take 1,200,000 mosquitoes, each sucking once, to completely drain the average human of blood. (Sources: discovermagazine.com / anannimos.blogspot.com) - Now you know.
