A health official checks mosquito larvae in tyres at a parking site. — VNA/VNS Photo Đinh Hằng

HCM CITY — The HCM City Centre of Diseases Control and Prevention (CDC) has urged the public to take preventive measures against dengue fever as the number of cases has increased recently. 

The city recorded 121 dengue fever cases from April 20-26, while there were 116 cases in the last four weeks.

However, the total cases since the beginning of the year fell by 70 per cent compared to the same period last year. There have been four outbreaks with a low number of cases in three districts.

Dr Lê Hồng Nga, head of the infectious disease prevention and control division at the CDC, said that although the city had a low number of dengue fever incidences, the risk exists in the community.

The city has more than 10,000 at-risk sites which are areas with a large number of workers’ rented rooms, construction works, and others. The CDC has instructed districts to regularly check risk sites in their locality and speak to people about preventive measures. 

In Tân Phú District’s Tân Quý Ward, for instance, there have been seven dengue fever cases since the beginning of the year. The district’s health officials and the local management board have worked together to check at-risk sites and speak to locals, according to Dr Lâm Phước Trí, head of the health station in Tân Quý Ward.

Nguyễn Thị Châu Sương, an official specialising in disease control and prevention in the ward, has shown builders how to kill mosquito larvae in water containers at construction projects, which are high-risk sites for dengue fever. 

Tân Quý Ward has 89 at-risk sites, Sương said. — VNS