Vila Central Hospital in Vanuatu’s capital Port Vila has confirmed 18 cases of dengue fever between 15 April and 4 August.
The Ministry of Health’s Director of Public Health, Len Tarivonda said these cases had no history of travel outside of Vanuatu, so the dengue was locally acquired.
Residents in Port Vila and the surrounding areas of Teouma, Erakor, Pango, Nambatu, Namburu, Tebakor, Malapoa, Bladinere, Freshwota and Beverly Hills have been urged to take necessary steps to prevent themselves from getting infected with dengue.
The preventative measures include wearing clothes that cover most parts of the body to prevent getting bitten by mosquitoes, sleep under mosquito nets, use insect repellent and physical barriers such as screens, closed doors and windows.
Church, school and community leaders are being urged to mobilise their groups to clean up around their homes, communities and public areas to prevent and reduce dengue mosquitoes and transmission.
Anyone that suspects they have symptoms of dengue infection should visit their nearest healthcare facility immediately for accurate testing and follow up.
Symptoms include nausea and vomiting, muscle or joint pain, severe headache, pain behind eye and rash. Severe warning signs include intense stomach pain, repeated vomiting, bleeding from nose or gums.
As there is no specific treatment for dengue, anyone that has dengue should rest and drink plenty of fluids.
Community awareness sessions will be conducted in affected areas on Efate to sensitize the population about dengue and personal and household prevention and protection measures.
Dengue is a viral infection that is spread by the Aedes mosquito which can also transmit Zika virus, Chikungunya and Yellow Fever disease.