Following a surge of dengue cases in Cambodia, health officials and officials from the Cambodian Red Cross are reminding the public to be mindful and vigilant about not contracting the disease. Should they suspect that they may have the disease, they should go to the hospital.
The officials called on the public to join hands in eliminating dengue from the community. They encouraged the public to destroy the habitats and breeding grounds of Aedes aegypti, the yellow fever mosquito, whose bite transmits the disease.
They recommend that households eliminate unnecessary sources of standing water in which the mosquitoes breed, such as old tires, and that certain workplaces like construction sites make extra efforts to keep their site clean and eliminate any sources of water the mosquitoes could breed in.
The Ministry of Health said recently that more than 1,200 cases of dengue have been recorded in the first five months of this year, indicating an increase of 300 cases compared to the same period of last year.
Dengue has claimed two lives of patients, both of whom waited too long before seeking treatment at a hospital, according to the ministry.
In Phnom Penh, the municipal authorities have gone to communities in nine out of the 14 districts to explain to the residents how to prevent dengue’s spread and reduce illness and deaths from the disease. They also provided a total of 11 tonnes of Abate, which is a larvicide used to eliminate mosquitoes.
