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17 tested positive to Zika in Vietnam
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A female Aedes aegypti mosquito acquires a blood meal on the arm of a researcher at the Biomedical Sciences Institute in the Sao Paulo's University in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Jan. 18, 2016. The Aedes aegypti mosquito is behind the outbreaks of Zika virus. (AP/Andre Penner, File)
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eventeen people have tested positive for the Zika virus in Ho Chi Minh City as of Monday, according to the city-based Pasteur Institute.
They were detected through an epidemic surveillance system the local Department of Health has put in place.
Trần Đắc Phu, head of the Ministry of Health’s Preventive Health Department, said it is impossible to prevent the spread of Zika because the city has a population of more than 12 million.
Besides, the virus is transmitted by the same aedes species of mosquito which also spreads dengue, which is now in its peak season in the city, he said during a discussion Monday between the Preventive Health Department and the city’s health department to seek measures to combat the disease.
People’s awareness of preventive methods, including killing of mosquitoes and larvae, remains low, he said.
(Read also: Vietnam reports 1st microcephaly birth likely linked to Zika)
On Sunday the Preventive Health Department confirmed the country’s first case of microcephaly, or abnormal smallness of the head, in a four-moth-old child, saying it is likely related to Zika.
The patient was found in the Central Highlands province of Đắk Lắk.
Phu instructed the city’s Department of Health to take prompt action to protect pregnant women.
They should be the focus of Zika screening and counselling, he said, adding it is a crucial task.
He also said pregnant women should have regular medical checks to monitor their health and that of their fetus.
In the case of any suspicion they have the disease, they should be tested and counselled, he said.
In Vietnam, 23 people have tested positive for the disease so far, with the remaining six reported in the provinces of Khánh Hòa, Phú Yên, Bình Dương, Long An, Trà Vinh, and Đắk Lắk.
According to the city’s health department, the number of facilities designated to monitor Zika has been increased from 30 to 45, and they include private general clinics in District 2 besides pediatrics, obstetrics, and district hospitals.
Nguyễn Tấn Bỉnh, the department’s head, said District 2 has the highest incidence of the disease in the city, and thus the threat there is high.
People with symptoms such as fever, joint pain and conjunctivitis should visit health facilities for free testing to screen for the disease, he added.
The department has said it would provide 2,000 more kits to the 45 designated health facilities for screening.
It has also urged the public to kill mosquitoes and larvae in their surroundings.
It fines individuals and organizations who fail to carry out the task and larvae are detected in their neighborhood.
This article appeared on the Viet Nam News newspaper website, which is a member of Asia News Network and a media partner of The Jakarta Post
