(QBĐT) - According to information from the Quang Binh Center for Disease Control (CDC QB), currently, some epidemics circulating in the country, such as: Dengue fever (DF), hand, foot and mouth disease, measles... are on the rise; at the same time, there have been sporadic cases of some infectious diseases that can be prevented by vaccines, such as: diphtheria, whooping cough... To proactively prevent and control epidemics, the Provincial People's Committee has directed the health sector to coordinate and deploy drastic and synchronous solutions to effectively prevent disease outbreaks in the province, especially infectious diseases that often occur during the summer.
Diseases under control
Since the beginning of the year, the health sector has actively advised on the implementation of dangerous disease prevention and control; at the same time, directed units to strengthen the prevention and control of dengue fever, rabies, measles, whooping cough, diphtheria and vaccine-preventable diseases...
Up to now, infectious disease groups in the expanded immunization program (EPP), emerging and re-emerging diseases such as influenza AH5N1, H7N9, MerS-CoV; dangerous epidemics of group A such as cholera, meningococcal infection, plague... have not been recorded in the whole province. Quang Binh is still one of the leading provinces in the Central region that is proactively controlling epidemics well in 2024.
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However, compared to the same period in 2023, the number of infectious diseases in the province has increased slightly. One death from rabies was recorded in My Trach commune (Bo Trach) in early February. At the end of June and early July, for the first time in many years, Quang Binh recorded 3 cases of children with whooping cough in Sat village, Truong Son commune ( Quang Ninh ), all of whom had not been vaccinated with whooping cough in the CTTCMR.
As soon as the case was detected, CDC QB directly coordinated with Truong Son Commune Health Station (Quang Ninh) to monitor, investigate and verify information about the cases, conduct epidemiological investigations in the community, make a list of people in close contact with the patient, and take samples for testing of suspected cases. At the same time, instruct the Health Station to strengthen propaganda about the risk of disease and measures to prevent and control whooping cough so that people can proactively prevent and control the benefits of vaccines in the TCMR program; organize catch-up vaccinations and mop-up vaccinations with whooping cough components for children who are in the TCMR program and have not been fully vaccinated and all children under 5 years old in the village. Currently, Sat village has not recorded any additional cases of whooping cough. 3 infected children have been treated and discharged home safely. The outbreak has been tightly controlled.
Dengue fever in peak season
Director of CDC QB, Dr. Do Quoc Tiep emphasized: Currently, the summer weather is hot and rainy, which is a favorable condition for mosquitoes that transmit dengue fever to thrive. This is also the peak summer tourism season of 2024, with a high demand for trade and travel, and the risk of infectious diseases in the summer increases, especially dengue fever has entered its peak period, so we cannot be subjective or negligent in preventing and fighting diseases in the community.
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To proactively control and prevent dengue outbreaks, CDC QB periodically conducts vector surveillance in 8 key communes: Canh Duong (Quang Trach), Quang Thuan (Ba Don Town), Duc Trach, Hoan Lao (Bo Trach), Bac Ly, Bao Ninh (Dong Hoi City), Tan Ninh (Quang Ninh), Loc Thuy (Le Thuy); regularly monitors insect indexes, promptly issues warnings and instructions to localities in disease prevention and control; directs district, town and city health centers to coordinate in implementing environmental sanitation campaigns, killing mosquito larvae/wigglers; proactively sprays chemicals to kill mosquitoes in high-risk communes and sprays to treat outbreaks with recorded cases.
As of July 22, 2024, the whole province recorded 534 cases of dengue fever, an increase of 3.1 times compared to the same period in 2023 (534/170 cases), with no severe cases or deaths. All 8/8 districts, towns and cities have recorded dengue fever cases. The locality with the highest number of dengue fever cases to date is Quang Ninh district with 133 cases, an increase of 7.3 times compared to the same period; Bo Trach 131 cases, an increase of 4.8 times compared to the same period and Dong Hoi city 107 cases, an increase of 4 times compared to the same period in 2023.
As a locality with a high number of dengue fever cases, Bo Trach has been proactively controlling outbreaks, preventing them from breaking out. According to the Head of the Department of Disease Control - Addiction Treatment Consulting (Bo Trach Medical Center), Dr. Do Xuan Tinh, in order to proactively control dengue fever when it is at its peak season, on July 19, the District Medical Center established a dengue fever prevention and control working group to strengthen inspection, monitoring, and investigation of insect indicators, and support commune and town health stations in preventing and controlling dengue fever. At the same time, coordinate with the People's Committees of communes to carry out propaganda to raise awareness and change people's behavior; organize campaigns to kill mosquito larvae... to mobilize the community to participate in preventing and controlling dengue fever.
Immediately after its establishment, the working group deployed communication and organized environmental sanitation to destroy mosquito larvae, and monitored the epidemic in Nhan Trach commune (Bo Trach), focusing on Nhan Duc and Nhan Bac, the two villages with the highest number of cases. Directed the commune health station to strengthen the monitoring and tracking of old outbreaks, promptly detect new outbreaks to control and prevent the spread of the epidemic; established a task force to destroy mosquito larvae in villages/hamlets with members of the women's union, youth union, police officers, village health workers... to periodically inspect and guide the destruction of mosquito larvae to each household, agency, and enterprise located in the area every week.
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Previously, in late June and early July, Bo Trach District Health Center also mobilized nearly 100 liters of chemicals, materials, and human resources to actively spray chemicals to kill mosquitoes in communes with high vector indexes and high risk of outbreaks. Nearly 4,000 households in all 8 villages of Dai Trach commune; 3 villages of Thanh Trach commune and market areas, schools, and agencies located in the commune have been protected with chemicals to prevent dengue fever.
People do not arbitrarily inject diphtheria vaccine
Recently, when the mass media reported that an 18-year-old female patient in Nghe An province died of diphtheria and Ha Tinh province also recorded a suspected case of diphtheria... people were worried about the dangerous level of the disease. Although Quang Binh has not had any cases of diphtheria for many consecutive years, according to reporters at vaccination service points, in recent days the number of people coming to get vaccinated against diphtheria has increased dramatically.
Ms. Tran Anh Thu (39 years old), an office worker in Dong Hoi City, shared, “When I learned about the dangers of diphtheria, I immediately took my 14-year-old daughter to the VNVC Quang Binh Vaccination Center to get a booster shot for peace of mind, because when she was young, she only got a few basic shots in the CTTCMR at the ward health station. When I came here, I was advised that I also needed to get a diphtheria vaccine, so both my daughter and I got vaccinated. The vaccine only requires one shot but prevents all three diseases: diphtheria, whooping cough, and tetanus.”
Ms. Phong Lan, representative of the VNVC Vaccination System, said: “Statistics in the week after the death due to diphtheria in Nghe An, the entire VNVC Vaccination System recorded a sudden increase in diphtheria vaccinations, of which the VNVC Quang Binh Vaccination Center increased by more than 1,000%. The subjects coming for vaccination are diverse, in which the highest increase was recorded for preschool children, adolescents and adults.”
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Director of CDC QB, Dr. Do Quoc, said: Previously, diphtheria was quite common in most localities in the country. Since 1985, the diphtheria vaccine was included in the CTTCMR, the disease has been controlled and only a few cases have been recorded due to lack of vaccination, often occurring in remote areas where vaccination rates are low and concentrated in people under 15 years old. Currently, there are vaccines to prevent the disease and specific drugs to treat diphtheria.
Since the beginning of 2024, the country has recorded 6 cases of diphtheria and 1 death. Specifically, Ha Giang province recorded 3 cases; Nghe An province recorded 1 case and death in June; Bac Giang province recorded 2 cases in July (having close contact with the death case in Nghe An province).
Doctor Do Quoc Tiep recommends: Currently, diphtheria has not been eliminated, so people can still get it if they have not been vaccinated and are exposed to the pathogen. To proactively prevent and control it, children need to be vaccinated against diphtheria according to the vaccination schedule and have all 3 doses to create basic immunity for children under 1 year old and 1 booster dose when the child is 18-24 months old to ensure immunity for children of vaccination age. Recently, based on the recommendations of the World Health Organization (WHO), the Ministry of Health issued Circular No. 10/2024/TT-BYT, which adds 1 dose of vaccine containing diphtheria for children 7 years old.
In addition, people should regularly wash their hands with soap; cover their mouths when coughing or sneezing; maintain daily personal hygiene, including nose and throat hygiene; limit contact with people who are sick or suspected of being sick; ensure that their homes and classrooms are well-ventilated, clean, and well-lit. When showing signs of illness or suspected of having diphtheria, they must be isolated and taken to a medical facility for timely examination and treatment.
“People should not panic, worry, or arbitrarily vaccinate themselves with vaccines containing diphtheria without specific instructions and recommendations from health authorities. If necessary, contact the nearest health facility for advice on disease prevention measures, ensuring vaccination of the right subjects, at the right dose, at the right time, and in a safe and effective manner,” emphasized the Director of CDC Quang Binh.
Ministry of Health: Currently, Vietnam is implementing 5 doses of diphtheria vaccine for children from 2 months old. This vaccination schedule is completely consistent with WHO recommendations and international trends, to create long-term immunity for Vietnamese children. According to WHO, additional doses of vaccine should be based on the specific epidemiological situation of each country and an assessment of the risk of disease. In Vietnam, the incidence of diphtheria is currently low and the health system can control cases. |
Hanoi
Source: https://www.baoquangbinh.vn/suc-khoe/202407/chu-dong-phong-chong-dich-benh-mua-he-2219742/
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