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| Illustrative photo. Health workers spray chemicals to kill mosquitoes and larvae.— VNA/VNS Photo |
Viet Nam News
BẾN TRE — Bến Tre Province has identified the area where the first case of Zika virus infection was recorded on January 6 and has taken steps to prevent an outbreak.
The infected patient is a 24-year-old woman who is 18 weeks pregnant, the HCM City Pasteur Institute has revealed.
Đỗ Tấn Hồng, director of the southern province’s Preventive Medicine Centre, said the first patient infected with the virus lives in Châu Thành District’s Quới Sơn Commune, near Giao Long industrial zone, where there are numerous boarding houses for workers. So the possibility of a Zika outbreak is high, he said.
The health centre will continue to spray chemicals to kill mosquitos and larvae. On January 17 and 18, the areas around where the Zika patient lives will be sprayed, Hồng said, adding that they have started educating local residents about preventive measures and environmental sanitation to prevent an outbreak.
The centre has also instructed clinics, boarding houses and health offices of enterprises in the industrial zone to look out for and report any cases of Zika immediately.
The centre has located pregnant women living in and around the area where the first infection was discovered and instructed them on how to look for any signs of the infection themselves and come in for regular check-ups.
“We guide local residents, especially pregnant women, to determine the initial signs of Zika virus infection and to take preventive measures in the community, Hồng said.
“People with symptoms such as muscle pain, fever and rashes should come to the health centre for check-up and treatment.”
The 24-year-old patient was treated at HCM City’s Tropical Diseases Hospital and has returned home after treatment. Two weeks before she was diagnosed with the infection. — VNS
