Deputy Minister of Health Nguyễn Thị Liên Hương inspects the treatment of a hand, foot and mouth disease patient at Children's Hospital 1 in Hồ Chí Minh City last June. VNA/VNS Photo

HCM CITY In the week leading up to the Tết (Lunar New Year) holiday in the Year of the Dragon 2024, the transmissive diseases situation in Hồ Chí Minh City showed a decreasing trend.

However, the city's Department of Health continues to advise residents to proactively take preventive measures to protect their health and that of their families.

The city's health sector closely monitors the epidemic situation, tracks the emergence of new variants, and promptly devises response plans for any abnormal situations.

During the pre-Tết week from January 29 to February 4, the epidemic situation in HCM City remained stable, with all types of diseases showing a decreasing trend. Specifically, the number of COVID-19 cases during the week was 25, a decrease of 28 per cent from the previous week and 40 per cent from the four-week average.

The cases of dengue fever and hand, foot and mouth disease have continuously decreased each week, since the beginning of 2024. In the past week, the city recorded 207 cases of dengue fever and 139 cases of hand, foot and mouth disease, decreasing by 24 per cent and 37 per cent, respectively, compared to the four-week average.

Starting from February 8, the COVID-19 vaccination and immunization activities in 22 districts and Thủ Đức City will be suspended until February 14 following the Tết 2024 holiday schedule for civil servants, officials and workers.

After the holidays, vaccination activities will resume. The specific schedule and locations for each area will be updated on the dealth department's portal. The types of vaccines currently available at the expanded vaccination sites in the city include the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine and various vaccines for children in the expanded immunisation programme, such as Hepatitis B, tuberculosis, diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus, Haemophilus influenzae type B, measles, Japanese encephalitis B, rubella, and the polio vaccine for pregnant women.

The emergence of the Omicron JN.1. subvariant in HCMC since December 2023, with new antigenic characteristics allowing the virus to easily evade immune system attacks, raises concerns about the rapid spread of COVID-19 during the Tết holiday.

However, there is currently no evidence that this variant causes more severe disease than other subvariants of Omicron. All existing SARS-CoV-2 strains currently cause similar COVID-19 symptoms, and the severity of the disease depends on the immune system status and health condition of each individual (whether they have underlying diseases or not).

In the face of the constant mutations of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, protecting people in high-risk groups remains a crucial and primary solution.

The HCMC Department of Health advises that during the Tết holiday, people in high-risk groups still need protection through measures such as controlling stable chronic diseases, receiving the full course of COVID-19 vaccines according to the Ministry of Health's recommendations, ensuring proper nutrition, staying hydrated, increasing physical activity, washing hands regularly, and wearing masks when in crowded places. VNS