Dengue fever kills 118, infects 381 people in Darfur

November 16, 2015 (KHARTOUM) – More than 381 people have been infected and 118 others have died over the past four months after coming down with dengue fever in the western Sudan region of Darfur, a heath official said on Monday.

The Sudanese state health minister Sumia Idriss said that the outbreak of dengue fever, killed 118 people in the five states of Darfur since last August. However she expected a decrease on cases suspected of the disease saying the region may be declared free of the fever within three weeks.

While briefing the parliament about the situation in Darfur, Idriss further said that up to Friday 13 November the highest number of reported cases is in West Darfur (268) followed by Central Darfur (53), North Darfur (43), East Darfur (11) and South Darfur (6).

She further told the Sudanese legislators that the death rate stands at one percent.

The state minister further said that the ministry dispatched medical teams to the region and provided the technical support. She said the government allocated 103 Million SP to address the situation, indicating that the dengue fever have no specific medical treatment so far but efforts are focused on the preventive measures to combat the transmission of the disease.

Dengue fever is spread by mosquito bites and manifests itself in symptoms including a sudden high fever, rashes, nausea, headaches and others. There is no treatment that specifically addresses the ailment though measures can be taken to mitigate its symptoms.
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For his part, the federal minister of Health Bahar Idriss Abu Garda Monday briefed President Omer Hassan al-Bashir about the measures taken by his ministry to combat the outbreak in Darfur.

Speaking to the media after the meeting, Abu Garda said that the dengue fever has been reduced in Darfur thanks to the efforts exerted by the ministry of health in the region.

He pointed out that the ministry is ready to combat any outbeak, adding that President Bashir has directed to provide the needed services through the comprehensive health coverage.

The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reported that there is a need for $1.94 million to implement a comprehensive response and containment plan the the World Health Organization (WHO) prepared together with the Sudanese health ministry.

OCHA further said that the government provided 3.45 million Sudanese Pounds (about US$557,000), for the affected states.

The comprehensive response plan covers all aspects of disease surveillance, laboratory analysis, vector control, case management and community mobilization, the UN agency said.

(ST)