Post by SA Hunter on Apr 5, 2016 21:14:54 GMT 8
vietnamnews.vn/society/294841/viet-nam-confirms-first-two-zika-cases.html
HÀ NỘI (VNS) — The health ministry announced the detection of Việt Nam’s first two Zika cases in the central Khánh Hòa Province and HCM City at a press conference this morning.
“These are the first two Zika cases in Việt Nam. The two patients are in stable condition,” Deputy Minister of Health Nguyễn Thanh Long said at the event.
“Tests have showed that none of the relatives or neighbouring families of the two patients has the Zika infection,” Long said.
The first patient is a 64-year-old woman in Phước Hòa Ward in Khánh Hòa’s Nha Trang City. She fell sick and had symptoms such as slight fever, headache, hives on feet and conjunctivitis.
She was admitted to the Khánh Hòa Tropical Diseases Hospital on March 23, where she tested positive for the Zika virus on March 31. The National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology (NIHE) and the HCM City Pasteur Institute yesterday also confirmed the result.
The second patient is a 33-year-old woman, who is in the second month of her pregnancy, in Thạch Mỹ Lợi Ward, District 2, HCM City. She fell sick with symptoms such as hives and conjunctivitis on March 29, and was admitted to District 2 General Hospital on the same day for a check-up.
Test conducted at the HCM City Pasteur Institute on March 31 and April 1, the NIHE on April 2 and the Nagasaki University laboratory located in the NIHE yesterday also confirmed she had the Zika virus.
Long said people should not worry too much about Zika, even though the disease could spread to more localities in the future.
The health ministry asked Khánh Hòa Province and HCM City to intensify measures to localise and eliminate Zika outbreaks. The ministry also said Khánh Hòa and HCM City should disseminate information about the Zika virus at commune and ward levels, as per legal regulations.
The health sector said as of April 4, it had conducted 1,215 tests on samples collected from suspected Zika patients in 32 provinces and cities nation-wide.
Long said the health ministry did not recommend people to limit travel between regions and provinces in the country.
“We only warned pregnant women to consider carefully before entering a Zika-affected area, because the virus might cause brain damage or microcephaly in babies if the mothers had the Zika infection during their first three months of pregnancy,” Long said.
Zika is mainly transmitted through mosquito bites. The best way to prevent the Zika infection is to kill mosquitoes and their larvae. Each person and household should take measures to prevent mosquito bites. Hospitals and medical units had prepared enough facilities, medicines and tests in response to the Zika threat, added Long.
The health ministry recently raised the warning level for the Zika virus nationwide. Provinces and cities were requested to take urgent measures against the spread of the virus in the country.—VNS
HÀ NỘI (VNS) — The health ministry announced the detection of Việt Nam’s first two Zika cases in the central Khánh Hòa Province and HCM City at a press conference this morning.
“These are the first two Zika cases in Việt Nam. The two patients are in stable condition,” Deputy Minister of Health Nguyễn Thanh Long said at the event.
“Tests have showed that none of the relatives or neighbouring families of the two patients has the Zika infection,” Long said.
The first patient is a 64-year-old woman in Phước Hòa Ward in Khánh Hòa’s Nha Trang City. She fell sick and had symptoms such as slight fever, headache, hives on feet and conjunctivitis.
She was admitted to the Khánh Hòa Tropical Diseases Hospital on March 23, where she tested positive for the Zika virus on March 31. The National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology (NIHE) and the HCM City Pasteur Institute yesterday also confirmed the result.
The second patient is a 33-year-old woman, who is in the second month of her pregnancy, in Thạch Mỹ Lợi Ward, District 2, HCM City. She fell sick with symptoms such as hives and conjunctivitis on March 29, and was admitted to District 2 General Hospital on the same day for a check-up.
Test conducted at the HCM City Pasteur Institute on March 31 and April 1, the NIHE on April 2 and the Nagasaki University laboratory located in the NIHE yesterday also confirmed she had the Zika virus.
Long said people should not worry too much about Zika, even though the disease could spread to more localities in the future.
The health ministry asked Khánh Hòa Province and HCM City to intensify measures to localise and eliminate Zika outbreaks. The ministry also said Khánh Hòa and HCM City should disseminate information about the Zika virus at commune and ward levels, as per legal regulations.
The health sector said as of April 4, it had conducted 1,215 tests on samples collected from suspected Zika patients in 32 provinces and cities nation-wide.
Long said the health ministry did not recommend people to limit travel between regions and provinces in the country.
“We only warned pregnant women to consider carefully before entering a Zika-affected area, because the virus might cause brain damage or microcephaly in babies if the mothers had the Zika infection during their first three months of pregnancy,” Long said.
Zika is mainly transmitted through mosquito bites. The best way to prevent the Zika infection is to kill mosquitoes and their larvae. Each person and household should take measures to prevent mosquito bites. Hospitals and medical units had prepared enough facilities, medicines and tests in response to the Zika threat, added Long.
The health ministry recently raised the warning level for the Zika virus nationwide. Provinces and cities were requested to take urgent measures against the spread of the virus in the country.—VNS