Illustrative image (Source: AP/VNA)Hanoi (VNA) – About 130 Vietnamese
and foreign medical experts gathered in Hanoi on June 12 at an international symposium
on the management, prevention and control of some diseases caused by
(), any of a group of viruses by
mosquitoes, ticks or other arthropods.
Addressing the event, Deputy Minister of
Health Nguyen Thanh Long stressed the complication of epidemics in the world in
recent years, adding that 150 out of 530 types ofArbovirushave been found harmful
to human and animal, he noted.
Vietnam and other Southeast Asian countries
such as Thailand, Laos and Cambodia are among countries vulnerable to Arbovirus,
especiallyAedes mosquito-borne diseases such as dengue fever and Zika. Last
year, 219 Zika-infected cases were reported in Vietnam, said Long.
The Deputy Minister underscored that the symposium
is a chance for scientists to discuss and give national-level recommendations and
solutions to deal with dengue fever and Zika.
He called on participants to seek solutions
in diagnosis, treatment, supervision and prevention of arthropod vectors, thus
researching vaccines against the for the community.
The recommendations will serve as reference
for dengue and Zika prevention and control strategies, he said.
Reports at the conference highlighted that
dengue fever is the communicable disease with fastest growth in the world. The World
Health Organisation, about 2,5 billion people, or 40 percent of the world population
are at risk of dengue fever infection, and 1.8 billion of them are in the Asia-Pacific
region.
Vietnam and ASEAN countries are in the most
vulnerable area to dengue fever. So far, no specialised medicines for the
disease have been found, while vaccine against the virus has yet to be used
widely.
At the same time, climate change along
withthe warmer earth and El Nino, means of transportation, uncontrolled urbanisation
as well as migration make dengue fever prevention and control more difficult.
Meanwhile, Zika virus is ravaging the
world, sweeping through 82 countries and territories, 13 of which reported
human-to-human transmission and 29 recorded microcephaly in infants, and 20
recognised polyradiculonevrites.
Participants also made suggestions on how
to apply improvement measures to suit each country, the dengue fever situation
in Vietnam and the region, as well as necessary measures to prevent and control
Aedes mosquito-borne diseases in the region.-VNA
Source: VietnamPlus
