Tuesday, October 27, 2009

INFLUENZA PANDEMIC (H1N1) 2009 (76): EL SALVADOR, DENGUE CO-INFECTION

Date: Sat 24 Oct 2009
Source: La Prensa Grafica [trans. Mod.MPP, edited]



In the eastern zone of the country, there have been reports of
patients with simultaneous infection [co-infection] of influenza A
(H1N1) and classical dengue fever, confirmed by the Vice Minister of
Health, Eduardo Espinoza. In total, there have been 4 such cases of
co-infection in the country nationwide.


Of these, 2 are from the eastern zone, and the other 2 are minors who
were treated at the Benjamin Bloom Children's Hospital months ago,
said the health official.

A day earlier, the head of the Health Surveillance Unit, Julio
Armero, said he feared that in Upire, Nueva Esparta (La Union), where
a 4th outbreak of the virus had been reported to the Department,
there was a cross of influenza A (H1N1) and dengue, which could lead
to a major outbreak.

The Vice Minister of Health, Violeta Menjivar, does not believe that
there will be an intersection of the disease at the national level,
because preventive sanitary measures have been implemented and
reinforced, and there is a focus on identifying and finding
preventive processes.

Communication with Honduras has been established in order to
implement joint sanitary policies and avoid a major outbreak related
to the flow of people, she said.

"In La Union, there are combined [infections with] (H1N1) and dengue,
so we have concentrated efforts of monitoring, education, prevention
and elimination of [mosquito] breeding sites," said the deputy minister.

Also, the Ministry of Health closed the case of the 9-month-old
infant that had died in Guajiniquil, and he was suspected of having
had H1N1. The mother took the infant from the [health center] before
specimens were obtained, and, in addition, there was no autopsy. But
the death was most probably due to H1N1 because 3 of the sisters of
the child had H1N1, and one of them was also co-infected with dengue virus.

Up to the present, El Salvador has reported 6 deaths from dengue
hemorrhagic fever and 22 from H1N1 infection.

[Byline: Loida Avelar Martinez]

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