Fighting an outbreak of dengue fever

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) teams are battling to save children’s lives as a deadly outbreak of dengue hemorrhagic fever sweeps through Honduras’ second-largest city, San Pedro Sula. Children are especially susceptible to the mosquito-borne disease. Three out of every four patients MSF treats at the public hospital in the northeast of Honduras are under 15, and there are three times as many cases as last year. “Since we started to work here, we’ve seen a constant flow of patients,” said MSF medical coordinator Dr. Luis Neira. Honduras © Analia Lorenzo/MSFA young patient is cared for by an MSF pediatrician in the emergency room of the public hospital in San Pedro Sula. Overwhelmed health authorities In August 2013, the number of suspected cases of dengue hemorrhagic fever reported in the region was up 235 percent on the previous year. Local health authorities were overwhelmed, prompting MSF to launch its response. “I came from Azacualpa, four hours’ drive away, as my granddaughter was sick,” said Mariana. “She had been sick for a few days, but the local health centre couldn’t treat her.” Mariana’s granddaughter, who has dengue with medical complications, was transferred to the intensive care unit set up by the MSF team in the Mario Catarino Rivas public hospital in San Pedro Sula. Deadly viral disease The health centre El Carrizal is one the four health centres supported by MSF in Tegucigalpa. Endemic in Central America, dengue is a v...
Source: MSF News - Category: Global & Universal Tags: Honduras Frontpage NEWS Source Type: news