The Vietnamese Ministry of Health will spend an estimated VND160 billion ($7.62 million) on preventing dengue fever in 2012, heard a meeting to review the disease fight work this year. The move is aimed to limit the infection and death rates of the contagious disease and prevent large-scale outbreaks as well as socialize the prevention, Deputy Head of The ministry’s Preventive Medicine Department Tran Thanh Duong said. Dengue fever have sickened around 62,000 local residents so far this year, claiming 56 lives, including eight deaths out of a total 17,800 infections in Nov, he added. The victims mainly come from the southern provinces, with 88.6% of infections and 94.6% of fatalities in the whole country. Dengue fever leads to a high number of fatalities in Vietnam each year, thus the vaccine plays an important role. The average number of such deaths is estimated 45-111 per year, experts said. Vietnam is one of six countries worst affected by the mosquito-borne disease in Asia Western Pacific with nearly 100,000 cases per year. (Ha Noi Moi – New Hanoi Dec 2 p7)
