Three Dengue Cases Confirmed in Cayman late March; no further transmission reported since
Posted Aug 01 2010 12:00am
Cayman Islands
Much earlier in the year, three people were diagnosed with Dengue Fever in the Cayman Islands. That was puzzling to the Mosquito Research and Control Unit, the government agency with primary responsibility for mosquito control on the British Dependency since, according to MRCU Director Dr. William Petrie, “The mosquitoes in the Cayman Islands do not carry the dengue fever virus themselves…” Nevertheless, the Dengue Fever mosquito is present in Cayman and that could have opened up the possibility of an infected person entering the country being bitten by a local mosquito, which in turn came in contact with the Suspected Cases, giving them the disease.
Blood samples taken from the three were later sent to the Caribbean Epidemiology Center (CAREC) in Trinidad from where they were forwarded to the Centres for Disease Control laboratory in Puerto Rico because CAREC’s testing facilities had already overwhelmed.
The news that Dengue was in the Cayman Islands led to accusations levelled at the MRCU that a reduction in aerial spraying was the cause. This placed Dr. Petrie of the MRCU on the defensive. In an effort to dispel those fears, he explained to Cayman News Service (CNS) in late February that aerial spraying is targeted at a type of mosquito that populates the swamps and not the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which thrives in standing water commonly found in artificial receptacles found in the urban environment. “The Aedes aegypti is not found in swamp areas and tends to breed in urban areas where we do not use aerial spraying. We are encouraging people to keep their yards and gardens as free of standing water as possible as this will keep the population down,” Petrie expounded.
Two months after the blood samples of the three Suspected Cases were submitted to the Centres for Disease Control in Puerto Rico, word came back to the Cayman Islands on March 11 that they were all positive for Dengue Type 2. The Health Services Authority also came to the conclusion that all three, residents of the Cayman Islands, had indeed contracted the Dengue virus locally. No other cases were reported.
Medical Officer of Health Dr. Kiran Kumar, in a statement to CNS in March expressed his relief “…that those three persons had recovered by late January, and equally glad…there (were) no more suspected dengue cases in the Cayman Islands.” Dr. Kumar reassured the public that the MRCU and the Department of Environmental Health were dedicated to a programme of anti-mosquito measures. Dr. Kumar added that public and private physicians were being equally vigilant.
Cayman Islands
Much earlier in the year, three people were diagnosed with Dengue Fever in the Cayman Islands. That was puzzling to the Mosquito Research and Control Unit, the government agency with primary responsibility for mosquito control on the British Dependency since, according to MRCU Director Dr. William Petrie, “The mosquitoes in the Cayman Islands do not carry the dengue fever virus themselves…” Nevertheless, the Dengue Fever mosquito is present in Cayman and that could have opened up the possibility of an infected person entering the country being bitten by a local mosquito, which in turn came in contact with the Suspected Cases, giving them the disease.
Blood samples taken from the three were later sent to the Caribbean Epidemiology Center (CAREC) in Trinidad from where they were forwarded to the Centres for Disease Control laboratory in Puerto Rico because CAREC’s testing facilities had already overwhelmed.
The news that Dengue was in the Cayman Islands led to accusations levelled at the MRCU that a reduction in aerial spraying was the cause. This placed Dr. Petrie of the MRCU on the defensive. In an effort to dispel those fears, he explained to Cayman News Service (CNS) in late February that aerial spraying is targeted at a type of mosquito that populates the swamps and not the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which thrives in standing water commonly found in artificial receptacles found in the urban environment. “The Aedes aegypti is not found in swamp areas and tends to breed in urban areas where we do not use aerial spraying. We are encouraging people to keep their yards and gardens as free of standing water as possible as this will keep the population down,” Petrie expounded.
Two months after the blood samples of the three Suspected Cases were submitted to the Centres for Disease Control in Puerto Rico, word came back to the Cayman Islands on March 11 that they were all positive for Dengue Type 2. The Health Services Authority also came to the conclusion that all three, residents of the Cayman Islands, had indeed contracted the Dengue virus locally. No other cases were reported.
Medical Officer of Health Dr. Kiran Kumar, in a statement to CNS in March expressed his relief “…that those three persons had recovered by late January, and equally glad…there (were) no more suspected dengue cases in the Cayman Islands.” Dr. Kumar reassured the public that the MRCU and the Department of Environmental Health were dedicated to a programme of anti-mosquito measures. Dr. Kumar added that public and private physicians were being equally vigilant.
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