Latest news with #dengue
RNZ News
3 days ago
- Health
- RNZ News
Pacific news in brief for 17 July
Fiji, Cook Islands, Kiribati, Tonga, French Polynesia and American Sāmoa have also declared dengue outbreaks. Photo: SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY A dengue fever outbreak in Samoa has claimed the life of a second child. The Sāmoa Observer reports Faith Melchior, 8, died in hospital on Monday night. She is the second child to die from dengue in Sāmoa this year - 12-year-old Misiafa Lene died in April. Fiji, Cook Islands, Kiribati, Tonga, French Polynesia and American Sāmoa have also declared outbreaks. Tuvalu and Nauru are on alert for the disease. A meeting of trade ministers from the Pacific Island Forum's African, Caribbean and Pacific States is underway in Suva. New Zealand's Nicola Grigg said it is a timely opportunity to discuss the importance of the rules-based trading system, with the World Trade Organisation at its core. She said the structure is vital for small Pacific island nations, including New Zealand. France is committing around US$20 to new undersea technology linking Vanuatu and New Caledonia, which will better prepare the Pacific for natural disasters. SMART will be the world's first Science Monitoring And Reliable Telecommunications submarine cable. French Ambassador to Vanuatu Jean-Baptiste Jeangène Vilmer said the cable will be fitted with sensors to measure sea temperature and seismic activity. He said it will help monitor climate change and - crucially - provide early warnings for tsunamis. The Vanutu Daily Post reported that the cable is expected to be in operation sometime next year. It will link Port Vila with Lifou Island in New Caledonia's Loyalty Islands group, traversing the seismically active New Hebrides Trench. Vanuatu's Electoral Commission says the verification of ballot boxes for the recent Provincial and By-Elections should be completed later today. According to the Vanuatu Daily Post , once that is done, the Commission can officially announce final results. The election was held on 8 July and attracted good voter turnout. The Commission has thanked all who participated - describing the election process as smooth and peaceful. Political parties have already begun lobbying to form new provincial governments. Fiji's HIV prevention taskforce says the country's law enforcement is actively hindering public health efforts. The United Nations reports a massive surge in HIV cases last year - numbers are up 284 percent. Around half of all cases were caused by intravenous drug use. Taskforce chair Dr Jason Mitchell told Pasifika TV there is a concerning lack of cooperation between the health sector and police. Schools in the Northern Marianas are bracing for a possible fiscal cliff, according to the Board of Education. Governor Arnold Palacios is planning substantial cuts to the education budget allocation. The government is proposing a US$40 million dollar grant but the Public School System has requested just over 49 million dollars. Board of Education has testified that if the government's proposal is implemented they could be forced to declare a state of emergency in education.
Malay Mail
12-07-2025
- Health
- Malay Mail
Dengue cases in Malaysia drop 58.6pc, but health minister warns public not to be complacent
KUALA LUMPUR, July 12 — Dengue cases in the country dropped to 32,299 between January 1 and July 5 this year, compared to 78,068 cases during the same period last year, a decrease of 58.6 per cent. Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad said during the same period this year, 21 deaths were recorded, compared to 65 deaths in the same period in 2024. 'This reduction is not a ticket for the public to be complacent, especially since globally, the rise in dengue cases is showing a deeply worrying trend,' he said in his speech at the national level Gotong-Royong Mega Perangi Aedes 1.0 programme (Aedes prevention clean-up) in conjunction with Asean Dengue Day 2025 at the Seri Kota public housing in Bandar Tun Razak, here today. Also present at the event were Bandar Tun Razak MP and the wife of the Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, and Health Ministry secretary-general Datuk Seri Suriani Ahmad. Dzulkefly said globally, the World Health Organisation (WHO) statistics showed dengue cases surged from 505,430 cases in 2000 to 14.3 million cases in 2024, an increase of more than 28 times. He said WHO statistics also showed that the number of dengue-related deaths worldwide rose from 960 in 2000 to 9,508 in 2024, representing nearly a tenfold increase over the past 25 years. To curb dengue in Malaysia, he said various efforts would continue to be implemented under a whole-of-nation approach to ensure the public had a high level of awareness regarding environmental cleanliness and embraced dengue prevention practices as part of their daily routine. 'This includes search-and-destroy activities to eliminate Aedes mosquito breeding grounds inside and outside the home by spending at least 10 minutes each week, and making the One Hour Malaysia Clean Up initiative a regular monthly activity. 'Members of the public must also seek immediate medical attention at nearby health facilities if they experience fever or other dengue symptoms,' he added. The gotong-royong (community clean-up) programme was held with the cooperation of residents of Seri Kota public housing in Bandar Tun Razak, volunteers from the Communication for Behavioural Impact (Combi) team, and staff from the Bandar Tun Razak Member of Parliament's office. — Bernama
Malay Mail
10-07-2025
- Health
- Malay Mail
Selangor adopts wait-and-see approach on dengue vaccine use
SHAH ALAM, July 10 — The Selangor government is taking a cautious approach on the dengue vaccine, choosing to monitor its use and impact before launching any related initiatives. State Public Health and Environment Committee chairman Jamaliah Jamaluddin said although the Selangor Health Department (JKNS) has acknowledged the vaccine's potential, the federal government has yet to encourage its widespread use as it remains newly introduced in Malaysia. 'The dengue vaccine is still relatively new — it hasn't even been in use for five years. According to JKNS, it shows promise, but its long-term effects are still unclear. 'For now, JKNS advises us to continue monitoring and assessing before implementing any dengue vaccination programmes,' she said during the Selangor state assembly sitting here today. She was responding to a supplementary question from Dr Quah Perng Fei (PH–Bandar Baru Klang) regarding Selangor's plans for a dengue vaccination programme. Jamaliah also shared that Selangor recorded 13,685 dengue cases between the first and 27th epidemiological week of this year — a sharp drop of 66.1 per cent compared to 40,313 cases during the same period in 2024. 'So far, five dengue-related deaths have been reported, compared to 12 in the corresponding period last year,' she added. — Bernama
RNZ News
09-07-2025
- Health
- RNZ News
American Samoa declares dengue outbreak
Photo: 123RF American Samoa's Department of Health has declared a dengue fever outbreak, with six confirmed cases. This follows the discovery of the disease last week in travelers returning to the territory. Territorial epidemiologist Adam Konrote told a press conference on Wednesday - streamed on the government-owned KVZK TV - that four of the confirmed cases were imported, but the two newest ones were locally acquired. "The two most recent cases had no travel history, confirming that dengue virus transmission is now happening within the community," he said. "This is a serious development and requires immediate coordinated action from both health authorities and the public." Dengue is not spread from person to person but through the bite of infected mosquitoes. Travellers returning from Fiji, Samoa or Tonga, which have previously declared outbreaks , are advised to monitor their health for up to 14 days for any symptoms of dengue. ASCC entomologist Dr Mark Schmaedick said there are 12 species of mosquito in American Samoa, but only two of them are known to carry dengue fever. "These are the black-and-white patterned mosquitoes that you see coming around to bite you in the day time. "Generally these species don't feed at night." Schmaedick said dengue-carrying mosquitoes tend to develop in habitats of water-holding containers, such as buckets, tyres and ice cream containers. He said they are not strong flyers and tend to stay close to where they hatched.
Daily Mail
04-07-2025
- Health
- Daily Mail
Warning as surge in organ-destroying virus hits popular summer hotspot
Holidaymakers jetting off to France could be at risk of contracting a potentially fatal virus that causes agonising body pains and, in severe cases, organ damage, officials have warned. European health officials have issued an alert about eight local cases of Chikungunya—which is normally spotted in tropical climates like South America and India. The Chikungunya outbreak has occurred far earlier in the year than is typical and this could indicate the mosquitoes that carry Chikungunya are becoming increasingly at home in France thanks to climate change, the warning said. The authorities have urged visitors to take precautions against the spread of this and other mosquito-borne pathogens. It comes weeks after UK vaccine chiefs suspended a newly approved jab for the Chikungunya virus from being given to people aged over 65, after reports of two deaths and 21 severe reactions related to the jab. Officials also warned that Europe has also seen a rise in dengue—another mosquito-borne disease historically known as 'breakbone fever' due to the intensive bone pain—with 304 local cases last year. This is a more than double the 130 recorded in 2023 and quadruple the 71 recorded in 2022. West Nile virus—another pathogen spread by invasive mosquitoes and which was detected in UK insects for the first time earlier this year —is also surging. Last year 1,436 cases of West Nile Virus in people were reported across 212 European regions encompassing 19 countries. This compares to 713 cases across 123 regions in 2023, according to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC). As such ECDC officials have warned travellers to take precautions when visiting areas where invasive mosquitoes can be found. These include 'applying mosquito repellent on exposed skin, wearing long sleeves and trousers, especially during dawn and dusk when mosquito activity peaks, and sleeping under bed nets or in rooms that are screened or air-conditioned if possible'. French public health officials have also urged guidance to citizens in response to rising numbers of invasive mosquitoes, such as covering or emptying water containers the insects use to breed. Similar warnings have also been issued in Belgium after environmental scientists reported increased numbers of tropical mosquitoes caught in traps. While most disease spread by mosquitoes cannot be spread person-to-person, experts have said such cases have the potential to spread further outbreaks. An infected person can travel to a different region and be bitten by a mosquito there, which can then spread it to locals and other tourists, creating a chain of cases. Leading British experts have repeatedly warned of the 'slow march north' of pests that carry tropical diseases reaching the UK and becoming established. Established means that the bugs that carry the pathogens have formed a self-sustaining population that natively breeds in Britain. Locally transmitted cases of tropical diseases differ from imported cases, where people are bitten by a mosquito overseas and then fall ill upon returning to their home country days later. Earlier this year, Britain recorded a record number of imported dengue cases with 904 in 2024. Dengue patients often experience an abrupt onset of fever, followed by severe headache, pain in the eyes, joints and muscles as well as nausea and vomiting. The disease was historically known as 'breakbone fever' in the 1700s because the pain it caused was so severe people felt like their bones were breaking. Experts from the UK Health Security Agency have echoed advice from their European counterparts urging tourists to take steps like using insect repellent while aboard to reduce their risk of falling ill.
