Dengue fever situation remains complicated
Commenting on the dengue fever epidemic situation in Vietnam in recent years, Associate Professor, Dr. Tran Dac Phu - former Director of the Department of Preventive Medicine (Ministry of Health) - said that Vietnam is currently circulating all 4 types of Dengue virus that cause dengue fever, in which the main circulating virus types are DEN-1 and DEN-2. Type DEN-2 is often associated with severe dengue fever cases and epidemics, as well as being the major cause of deaths related to dengue fever.
Every year, the number of cases and deaths due to dengue fever remains high and is spreading more and more widely because mosquitoes have the characteristic of reproducing in water in bottles, jars, water tanks... and hovering and landing on objects, making it very difficult to spray pesticides to eliminate and completely solve the problem...
According to information from the Hanoi Center for Disease Control (CDC), from the beginning of 2024 to now, the city has recorded 6,243 cases of dengue fever, down 80% compared to the same period in 2023.However, there are currently 58 active outbreaks.
Records from Lao Dong reporters at a number of hospitals in Cau Giay district show that the number of patients hospitalized for dengue fever has decreased significantly.Many patients confirmed to have dengue fever have been discharged home for outpatient treatment.
Meanwhile, in Ho Chi Minh City, from October 28 to November 3, 2024 (week 44), 661 cases of dengue fever were recorded, an increase of 21% compared to the average of the previous 4 weeks. Notably, the dengue fever epidemic has shown signs of continuous increase in the past 4 weeks from 516 cases in week 41 to 661 cases in week 44. The number of hospitalizations has also increased with 414 cases, an increase of 89 cases compared to the previous week, of which 113 cases were staying in other provinces (accounting for 27.3%). The average number of severe cases treated is 12 cases/day.
Need to vaccinate people for free against dengue fever
Faced with the dengue fever epidemic, the Ministry of Health recently proposed including dengue fever vaccination in the Expanded Immunization Program after a period of testing in the community.
According to epidemiologists, the dengue vaccine has been shown to be highly protective, with an effectiveness against infection with all four dengue serotypes of up to 80.2% at 12 months after the second dose. The vaccine is also highly effective in preventing hospitalizations due to dengue, with a reduction rate of up to 90.4% after 18 months of the second dose.
The Department of Preventive Medicine (Ministry of Health) believes that the inclusion of dengue fever vaccine in the expanded immunization program should be implemented in accordance with the Law on Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases, which is to add the list of infectious diseases with vaccines to the expanded immunization program, ensuring free vaccination for people.
To include in expanded immunization, it is necessary to assess disease burden, safety, and immune efficacy, as well as consider community acceptance and evaluate the economic efficiency of dengue fever vaccines.
The use of dengue fever vaccine aims to reduce the number of cases and limit severe cases requiring hospitalization or death due to dengue fever, contributing to the common goal of protecting, caring for and improving people's health.
The Ministry of Health is coordinating with units to evaluate and research the above factors and then submit them to the Government. If appropriate, they will be included in the expanded vaccination program for free vaccination for the people. Before including them in the free vaccination program for the people, the Ministry of Health will have a plan to test them in the community for about 2 years.
Discussing this issue, Associate Professor, Dr. Tran Dac Phu - former Director of the Department of Preventive Medicine (Ministry of Health) - said: Dengue fever vaccination can reduce the risk of disease by more than 80% and prevent the risk of hospitalization by up to 90%. "In particular, the vaccine is effective in preventing reinfection for people who have had dengue fever, which is very meaningful for Vietnam" - Associate Professor, Dr. Tran Dac Phu said.
* Statistics from the Department of Preventive Medicine show that since the beginning of the year, the country has recorded about 80,000 cases of dengue fever, with 12 deaths.
* Currently, in Vietnam, the Qdenga vaccine to prevent dengue fever is being injected for a service price of 2.7 million VND/dose, 2 injections 3 months apart.
