3 diagnosed with dengue

Muscat, Dec 16 - Three people have so far been diagnosed with dengue fever in the Sultanate, the Ministry of Health (MoH) has said. The MoH had last week said a case of dengue had been detected in the Wilayat of Seeb. The person was not infected because of travel, but through local transmission.Dr Said bin Khamis al Mukhaini, Head, Department of Malaria, Vector-borne and Emerging Diseases, MoH, confirmed that the three were infected through local transmission of the disease.He said: “It is necessary to search and detect areas of existence of the mosquito that did not exist in Muscat before.” In an attempt to contain the main carrier of the disease and prevent its outbreak, the ministry constituted six teams and conducted an insect survey in collaboration with the Muscat Municipality.

SEEB Scanned All areas of Seeb have been covered by the survey, which inspected the Aedes Aegypti mosquito breeding sites in Seeb. These six blocks are: Block 3 (North Mawaleh and airport); Block 4 (South Mawaleh), Block 5 and 6 (Al Khoudh District 3, 4 and 5); Block 7 (Wadi Al Lawami, Sur al Hadid and Sharadi); and Block 8 (South Mawaleh 4 and 5, and Al Khoudh District 2). The official said the teams were divided into detection and combating teams. “The teams entered some houses and farms to inspect dengue mosquitoes and used pesticides to eliminate them in the areas of existence, including water tanks.” He called upon citizens and residents to facilitate work of the teams in controlling the factors that help spread and breed harmful insects. “Follow instructions to eliminate mosquito breeding by disposing of collected water and solids, and empty containers where dengue mosquitoes might gather,” he said. The Directorate-General of Muscat Municipality intensified fumigation to control the spread of mosquitoes besides holding awareness meetings in mosques, public places and through home visits. According to the ministry, the Aedes Aegypti mosquito transmits dengue, yellow fever, Zika virus and other viral diseases. Patients with dengue fever show symptoms such as high fever, headache and muscle pain.

FIVE DAYS for diagnosis It takes five days to a week to confirm dengue in patients having fever. The blood platelet levels go down in dengue patients. It’s a cause of concern if it goes below 20,000. Some of these mosquitoes are found in urban dwellings and forests. The age of an adult mosquito is between two weeks and one month, depending upon the environmental conditions.