Mombasa, Kenya experiencing first dengue fever outbreak in three decades
Following recent reports of the first dengue fever outbreak on the west African coastal province of Luanda, Angola, health officials are now reporting another outbreak on the other side of the continent in Mombasa, Kenya, according to a recent report from the Kenyan news source, The Star.
As of the end of April, the Kenya Medical Research Institute has reported more than 140 cases of the mosquito borne viral disease in the Indian Ocean coastal county.
According to a US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Kenya travel notice Friday, this is the first identified dengue outbreak in Mombasa since 1982.
The Kenyan Ministry of Public Health and Sanitation (MOPHS), the Kenya Medical Research Institute, the Walter Reed Project, and CDC are working together to reduce the mosquito population in the area, educate health care workers and community members about the disease, and monitor the area for more dengue cases.
Dengue fever is an infectious disease carried by mosquitoes and caused by any of four related dengue viruses. This disease used to be called “break-bone fever” because it sometimes causes severe joint and muscle pain that feels like bones are breaking.
People get the dengue virus from the bite of an infected Aedes mosquito. It is not contagious from person to person.
There are three types of dengue fever in order of less severe to most: the typical uncomplicated dengue fever, dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHS) and dengue shock syndrome (DSS).
Mombasa is the second-largest city in Kenya, with a population of over one million people. A regional cultural and economic hub, Mombasa has a prominent port and an international airport, and is an important regional tourism centre. The city is situated on the east coast of Kenya, in Coast Province, bordering the Indian Ocean.
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I have a consistent headache and joint pains.Can this mean i have dengue fever?
[…] Mombasa, Kenya experiencing first dengue fever outbreak in three decades The Global Dispatch Following recent reports of the first dengue fever outbreak on the west African coastal province of Luanda, Angola, health officials are now reporting… […]
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