Despite reports of the dengue virus being spotted in Guam, dengue fever remains a non-threat to the CNMI, but surveillance efforts have been heightened to ensure it does not gain entry here, according to the Commonwealth Health Care Corp. chief executive officer Esther Mun\u00f1a.<\/p>\n
An imported dengue fever case was confirmed in Guam last Friday, causing local public health agencies to issue warnings about mosquito breeding grounds.<\/p>\n
Mu\u00f1a said in an interview yesterday that Guam is more prone to imported dengue fever cases since it has more access to the Pacific and is a hub for air travel in the region. That\u2019s not so for the CNMI, she said, which is relatively safer.<\/p>\n
That, and the fact that the mosquito that carries the dengue virus cannot be found in the CNMI makes it a non-threat to the islands.<\/p>\n
Mu\u00f1a noted that the hospital\u2019s Public Health Preparedness Program, led by Warren Villagomez, is capable of catching the presence of dengue fever on Saipan right away. She added that the CHCC Division of Public Health, along with CHCC\u2019s laboratories, are coordinating to ensure that they catch the presence of the virus right away.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll of this is part of that integration,\u201d she said. \u201cRight now, there is nothing. We are putting surveillance on it.\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cWe knew about Guam but, at the end of the day, we don\u2019t [want to] create panic. We also want to keep track of it,\u201d she said. <\/p>\n
According to Mu\u00f1a, besides not having the mosquitoes that carry the disease, dengue fever is easily treatable.<\/p>\n
News media outlets note that Palau is currently experiencing a dengue outbreak. The Palau Ministry of Health have reported a total of 164 dengue cases.<\/p>\n
Other Pacific islands were the dengue virus is present includes Tahiti, Fiji, American Samoa, New Caledonia, and Vanuatu. French Polynesia is also seeing some dengue cases.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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