Every year, the period from September to November is often the peak of dengue fever and hand, foot and mouth disease. This year, dengue fever in Can Tho City has begun to thrive in July with the number of cases increasing by 20 - 30% over the same period. Up to now, the disease is still complicated with many serious cases.
By the end of August, the Infectious Disease Monitoring System, Can Tho City has recorded more than 1,840 cases of dengue fever, no deaths have been recorded. Doctors said that this September, the disease has not shown any signs of cooling down due to favorable weather conditions for mosquito development.
At Can Tho Children's Hospital, Dr. CKII Nguyen Huynh Nhat Truong, Head of the hospital's Dengue Fever Department - said that the unit continues to fully equip drugs, supplies, chemicals for disease treatment; airbikes, blood filters... to promptly prepare for treatment of severe cases.
Not only in children but also in adults, Specialist Doctor I Pham Tan Dat, Department of Tropical Diseases of the Hospital - informed: "Currently, dengue fever in adults is getting worse, with dangerous complications such as hepatitis, shock leading to low blood pressure... therefore, all people, especially those with the disease, should not be subjective to this disease".
It is worth mentioning that while dengue fever has not cooled down, the number of cases of hand, foot and mouth disease has shown signs of increasing. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) of Can Tho City said that according to reports from treatment facilities, from the beginning of 2025 to mid-September, about 2,700 cases of hand, foot and mouth disease were recorded, an increase of 696 cases compared to the same period in 2024.
Doctors warn that hand, foot and mouth disease mainly occurs in children under 10 years old, and can also occur in adults; but is more common in children under 5 years old, concentrated in children under 3 years old, especially in children from 1-2 years old.
Doctor Huynh Hung Dung - Head of the Department of Infectious Diseases, Can Tho Children's Hospital - informed that the department currently has about 200 beds and divides each severity ward. Along with preparing treatment drugs, when the number of diseases exceeds the threshold, timely response and arrangement will be provided.
It is known that there is currently no specific medicine for hand, foot and mouth disease. Therefore, parents must take their children immediately to a hospital or medical facility responsible for treating the disease if they see children showing unusual signs.
The doctor also noted that children can have dengue fever and hand, foot and mouth disease at the same time. Although both can cause fever and rash, they have different characteristics.
Accordingly, for dengue fever, it is often a high, continuous, difficult to relieve fever, accompanied by red spots on the skin, and can cause subcutaneous bleeding (inhibition or red patches). As for the hands, feet and mouth, there is often a mild fever or high fever, with nodules and blisters in the mouth, palms, soles of the feet, and buttocks.
