Dengue fever: Residents in Central Region call for increased public Awareness

Barely two weeks after the outbreak of the dengue fever disease in Ghana, a cross section of residents in the Central Regional capital have called for increased public awareness on the disease.

They lament, that the available information on the disease is inadequate, hence, the need for continuous public education to avoid misinformation.

Information gathered from the Ghana Health Service (GHS), indicates that the number of confirmed cases of dengue fever has risen to thirty-six (36), days after the initial confirmation of nine (9) cases.

The Eastern Region of Ghana earlier recorded nine cases, which later spread to the Central Region, increasing the number of recorded cases to thirty-six

GHS says more samples from suspected cases have been submitted to the Noguchi Memorial Institute for Medical Research (NMIMR) for confirmation.

“Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne illness that occurs in tropical and subtropical areas of the world. Mild dengue fever causes a high fever and flu-like symptoms. The severe form of dengue fever, also called dengue hemorrhagic fever, can cause serious bleeding, a sudden drop in blood pressure (shock) and death”, according to mayoclinic.org.

A confirmed case requires laboratory confirmation through positive IgM antibody, a four-fold or greater rise in IgG antibody titres, positive PCR, or viral isolation.

Speaking to Gnewsprime.com in Cape Coast, a number of residents  spanning traders to Fishermen, some of whom were not aware of the disease in Ghana, were of the view that increased education from the Ghana Health Service would save many lives.

They hoped the government would as a matter of urgency attach importance to the disease and find ways to control the situation.