Peru: Dengue fever outbreak intensifies in Piura region /update 5

Event

A dengue fever outbreak continues to intensify in the northwestern Piura region. A total of 582 cases of the mosquito-borne disease, including 110 that have been clinically confirmed, have been reported in Piura since the beginning of the year (as of April 3). The majority of cases have been detected in the districts of Piura, Sullana, Castilla, Tambogrande, Veintiséis de Octubre, and Chulucanas.

Furthermore, 78 cases of chikungunya (ten confirmed) and 63 cases of the Zika virus (three confirmed) have also been reported. All three diseases are transmitted by the same mosquito, the Aedes aegypti.

Context

The region has been under a state of emergency, declared by the Peruvian Ministry of Health, due to fears of disease outbreaks since February 25. Residents are being asked to take measures to destroy potential mosquito breeding grounds in their homes and on their properties - i.e. pockets of fresh water or anywhere such pockets can form - and to allow health workers to enter their properties to carry out inspections.

Symptoms of dengue fever include fever, headache, muscle and joint pain, fatigue, nausea, and rashes. Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever (DHF) is a potentially deadly complication that is characterized by high fever, the enlargement of the liver, and hemorrhaging.

Symptoms of chikungunya are similar to those of dengue fever. The virus is infrequently fatal but potentially debilitating joint pain can last for weeks, even months, after the initial recovery.

Symptoms of Zika - fever, headache (behind the eyes), conjunctivitis, rash, vomiting, and muscle and joint pain - can appear two to seven days following contraction of the disease, although the virus is asymptomatic in approximately 80 percent of cases. Although the Zika virus is usually relatively benign, links between it and severe birth defects as well as the potentially fatal neurological disorder Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS) have been established. Transmission of the virus is also possible via sexual intercourse.

Advice

Individuals in Piura, and Peru more generally, are advised to take measures to protect themselves from mosquito bites - e.g. by wearing covering clothing, using insect repellent, and sleeping under mosquito-netting or in an air conditioned room - and to eliminate possible mosquito breeding grounds (small pockets of fresh water, such as rain water that has collected in cans, bottles, tires, flower pots, clogged gutters, etc.).