Guadeloupe has passed " in epidemic phase for dengue fever » with a rare serotype that could cause « a high number of cases", according to an official statement released on November 14 calling for everything to be done to " minimize " the impact of the disease. Meeting during the day, the management committee chaired by the regional prefect took note " the transition to the epidemic phase for dengue fever", specifies this joint press release from the prefecture, the association of mayors of Guadeloupe and the Regional Health Agency of Guadeloupe and the Northern Islands.
The authorities launch " a call for the mobilization of all stakeholders involved "in the fight" to try to minimize the impact of this disease » in the coming weeks. This year,a serotype of the dengue virus that has circulated little over the past twenty years", the DENV3, makes the authorities fear " risks of severe form " And " a high number of cases " if any " resolute actions of fight or prevention are not implemented", according to the press release.
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Fight against stagnant water
Among 62 samples analyzed between the end of September and mid-October, " 97% are DENV3", according to the latest bulletin from Sante Publique France. The seasonal threshold for clinical cases (80 cases per week) has been far exceeded. At the end of October, it was estimated at 540 in community medicine, more than double the number in September. In hospitals, Sante Publique France recorded last month " on average 40 weekly visits to the emergency room for suspected dengue fever, compared to 25 in September“.
The joint statement from the authorities recalled that it was " primordial » to combat stagnant water which allows the larvae of the disease vector, the mosquito, to develop. This stagnant water is often « located around or in homes » and may have been « fueled by recent heavy rains", the press release underlines. The authorities also recommend " wearing loose, covering clothing", the use of"an approved repellent product » and the use of pre-impregnated mosquito nets.
The territory is also facing the emergence of a new type of mosquito. highly competent to transmit all arboviruses (Dengue, Chikungunya, Zika)", according to a press release published at the end of October by the Community and the Health Agency. These larvae ofAedes albopictus were first spotted in the Lorient district of Saint-Barthelemy, in the north of Guadeloupe, it was specified.
Dengue fever, which can cause high fever, body aches and fatigue, is a potentially fatal infectious disease.
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