Doctors examine a patient with high fever in Cho Don district’s Health Centre in the northern province of Bac Kan. (Photo courtesy of the Cho Don District’s Health Centre)Hanoi (VNA) – More than 700 students in
in the northern province of Bac Kan have missed school because of a strong bout
of fever which has seen one child die.
Five other children have tested positive for influenza B and
more than 100 are being treated in hospital.
The fatal case is an eight-year-old child, who was taken to the
district’s Health Centre on October 24 morning with a high fever of 40.5
degrees Celsius.
The child fell into a coma and despite resuscitation efforts, was
pronounced dead on the same day.
Doctors of the centre quickly gave resuscitation but failed, the
patient died at 10:30 am on the same day.
According to the province’s Centre for Disease Control, the
symptoms of the patients are fever with temperatures from 38.5 degrees Celsius
to 40 degrees Celsius, cough, sore throat, and fatigue.
The district’s Education and Training Office said the
patients are mainly from Bang Lung Primary School, the Ethnic Minority Boarding
School and some other schools from the district.
Doctor Nong Van Quan, director of the district’s health centre,
said as soon as they received information about the , the centre took
samples and sent seven to the Hanoi-based National Institute of Hygiene and
Epidemiology for tests.
The initial results showed five samples were positive for
influenza B, and two samples were negative, he said.
Vi Duy Tuyen, Deputy Director of the province’s Health Department,
said is a common infectious disease, however, there can still
be serious complications if it is not detected, monitored and consulted
early.
Parents and schools need to regularly monitor children if they
show signs of fever and must be taken to a medical facility for treatment,
he said.
When a child has a fever, parents should take them to see a doctor
to assess the level of the illness. If the disease is mild and moderate,
parents will be instructed to take care of the child at home.
If the child has a fever below 38.5 degrees Celsius, and no
underlying conditions, then parents should only use common measures to reduce
fever.
In case the child has a fever above 38.5 degrees Celsius, parents
should use some medicine such as paracetamol.
Parents are advised to enhance nutrition for children to increase
resistance. If children have difficulty eating, they should be taken to their
nearest health facility.
According to the World Health Organization, there are
four types of , types A, B, C and D. Influenza A
and B viruses circulate and cause seasonal epidemics of disease. Influenza B
viruses are not classified into subtypes, but can be broken down into lineages.
Currently, circulating influenza type B viruses belong to either B/Yamagata or
B/Victoria lineage. The most effective way to prevent the disease is
vaccination./.
Source: VietnamPlus
