Thailand health officials report 1,433 dengue cases this year, expect less severe year than 2013
In a follow up to a story last week where Thai health authorities warned of a possible dengue outbreak in the country this year as the hot season arrives, officials have released the current case count for 2014.
According to a National News Bureau of Thailand report Sunday, The Trang Public Health Office is reporting 1,433 dengue fever cases this year to date, which includes one fatality.
Officials expect a slower dengue season this year with an estimated 80,000 to 100,000 cases, a far cry from the 152,768 dengue patients and 132 deaths identified in 2013.
Thai health authorities are urging the public to do their part to eliminate mosquito breeding sites to keep the dengue situation at bay.
Thailand saw it’s worst year of dengue fever in 1987 when some 174,000 people were infected with more than 1,000 deaths.
Dengue is a mosquito-borne, potentially fatal disease that affects between 50 and 100 million people in tropical and subtropical regions every year, causing fever and muscle and joint aches.
According to the World Health Organization, Dengue and dengue hemorrhagic fever are present in urban and suburban areas in the Americas, South-East Asia, the Eastern Mediterranean and the Western Pacific and dengue fever is present mainly in rural areas in Africa.
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