"Dengue"

Thailand may be luckier than other countries as a study from Brazil has revealed that former dengue patients have a low chance of dying from Covid-19.

More than 6,000 people have been hit by dengue fever, four of whom have died, in four northeastern provinces in eight months.

As the Covid-19 crisis eases in Thailand, alarm is growing over a nationwide outbreak of deadly dengue fever that has sickened almost 6,000 children so far this year.

Authorities in Nakhon Ratchasima province launched a special campaign in City Hall on Friday (June 5) to teach people how to protect themselves not just from Covid-19, but also dengue and rabies. 

Eleven people have been killed and more than 14,000 sickened by a nationwide dengue fever outbreak that has been super-charged by the onset of the rainy season.

Thai health officials report that 10,938 people contracted dengue fever from January 1 to May 5 and nine died from the mosquito-borne disease.

Dr Thanarak Phliphat, deputy director-general of the Department of Disease Control, said that with the return of dengue fever it may soon become tougher for doctors to diagnose and detect Covid-19 infections.

Apart from the continued threat of Covid-19, Thais are now being urged to prepare for seasonal influenza and dengue now that the rainy season is approaching.

The dengue outbreak in Bangkok is still worrying with 4,903 people becoming infected with the virus and three dead so far this year, Bangkok Metropolitan Administration governor Aswin Kwanmuang said.

The Buri Ram chief public health officer has warned local residents to take urgent measures after a three fold increase in the number of people falling victim to the dengue virus compared to last year.

With Thailand facing its worst dengue outbreak in half a decade, people of all ages have been advised to protect themselves from mosquito bites and control the Aedes aegypti mosquito population.

Dengue fever has claimed its first victim in Chiang Mai this year, a 12-year-old fifth grader.