Expert has warned that a dengue fever epidemic would soon sweep through Cambodia at a time when infections of the disease are usually at their lowest, the Mekong Times newspaper said Thursday.
Generally, dengue fever is most prevalent from early January till May in Cambodia, but this year the worst period will be from the end of April till July, claimed Ngan Chantha, vice director of National Center For Dengue and Malaria Control.
Ngan Chantha said the change has resulted from many factors such as the impact of the dengue epidemic in late 2007 and environmental changes that have altered the existing virus and irregular rainfall.
Other subordinate factors such as unsanitary conditions and migration exacerbate the problem, he said.
However, a combined Health Ministry and National Center Against Dengue Fever campaign dubbed "Abate", an insecticide used to kill mosquito larvae, should go some way towards reducing the risk, Ngan Chantha said.
Officials are distributing Abate to people in high risk areas for them to add to their water storage to kill the anopheles mosquito larvae that spread dengue fever when they reach adulthood.
Source: Xinhua
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