T

he capital is making progress in its fight against dengue fever as illustrated by the decreasing number of cases recorded in many parts of the city over the past two years.

The infectious disease surveillance officer of Tambora community health center (puskesmas) in West Jakarta, Eko Djiwantoro, said the health center saw fewer dengue fever cases last year than in 2011.

“The number of dengue fever cases in December 2012, for instance, was only five cases, decreasing from 12 cases a year earlier. In 2010, we recorded 25 cases in December. This shows significant improvement in the fight against dengue fever,” Eko said on Monday.

He said the decrease in dengue fever cases last year was due to the success of an anti-mosquito campaign, locally known as Pemberantasan Sarang Nyamuk (PSN), which was introduced in 2004.

“The campaign is done by voluntary larvae controllers and held every Friday in every neighborhood unit in the capital. The campaign is showing results now,” Eko said.

Larvae controllers are residents appointed by neighborhood unit chiefs to help ensure a healthier neighborhood by informing people about the dangers of dengue fever. They are also responsible for inspecting possible breeding grounds of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, which breed in stagnant water, including vases, wet shower floors, toilet tanks, uncovered barrels, rain gutters, earthenware pots and discarded tires.

Separately, a doctor from a puskesmas in Jagakarsa, South Jakarta, said that in 2011 there were approximately 200 dengue fever cases in the area and the number had dropped by 48 percent in 2012.

She said the number of cases had decreased thanks to larvae controllers and also due to the longer rainy seasons in the past two years.

She said that constant rain during the peak of the wet seasons made it difficult for Aedes mosquitoes to find pools of stagnant water in which to lay their eggs and for the larvae to mature into mosquitoes, which takes seven days.

“The larvae can only grow when rain intensity is lower, when there is time for the larvae to grow. Therefore, more people are infected by the disease during the transition period from rainy season to dry season in April or May, when there are more outdoor puddles,” she said. “This means, if the rainy season is longer, fewer people are infected by
dengue fever.”

Health Agency chief Dien Emmawati said on Tuesday that 6,669 dengue fever cases had been recorded last year, down from 6,757 cases in 2011. The agency recorded 19,285 cases in 2010.

Dien said the administration had also increased efforts in informing the public that fumigation was not an ideal solution to stop the spread of dengue fever.

“Fumigation only kills mosquitoes, not the larvae. The only way to stop the spread of dengue fever is by killing the larvae, by eliminating breeding sites,” Dien said.

There is no cure for Dengue fever. In severe cases, dengue is potentially lethal but early diagnosis and careful clinical management by experienced physicians and nurses can often save lives.

Dien previously said that to improve the city’s fight against dengue fever, the administration would upgrade puskesmas, so they no longer had to refer dengue patients to hospitals.

There are currently 22 puskesmas that provide inpatient facilities, with a total capacity of 160 beds. The agency aims to provide similar facilities at all 44 district-level puskesmas by 2015. (nad)