{"id":14599,"date":"2011-11-02T11:01:16","date_gmt":"2011-11-02T15:01:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/?p=14599"},"modified":"2011-11-02T11:13:04","modified_gmt":"2011-11-02T15:13:04","slug":"dengue-fever-could-return-with-more-severity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/2011\/11\/dengue-fever-could-return-with-more-severity","title":{"rendered":"Dengue Fever Could Return With More Severity"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Dengue fever outbreaks could become more severe in the Bahamas<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A proper research facility is needed to assist in the fight against dengue fever, which is becoming more prevalent in The Bahamas, according to a recent study, \u2018Dengue Fever: An Emerging Infectious Disease in The Bahamas\u2019, released in The International Journal of Bahamian Studies by The College of The Bahamas (COB) last week.<\/p>\n

The study\u2019s lead researcher is Sherrie V. Bain, who is an adjunct microbiology instructor at the Keiser University in Florida. According to the study, several recorded cases of the acute form of dengue fever this year (dengue hemorrhagic fever) suggest a trend that dengue fever might return in future with increased severity.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is not the first time that a dengue fever outbreak has occurred in The Bahamas,\u201d notes the study. \u201cDengue fever outbreaks also occurred in 1998 and 2003. However, the number of confirmed cases in this year\u2019s outbreak, as of October 2011, is almost seven times that of the last two dengue fever outbreaks combined. On a national level, The Bahamas will need a multi-faceted, preemptive approach that is not simply limited to vector control at the onset of the next outbreak.\u201d<\/p>\n

The study also notes that the spread of dengue fever will not be curbed by addressing the mosquito population alone.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is time for the public health sector, as well as The College of The Bahamas, to begin to take measures to develop a comprehensive dengue fever eradication policy in The Bahamas,\u201d read the study. \u201cAlthough reduction of the Aedes vector population by using insecticide may seem like the obvious route to pursue, it may also prove to be the most difficult goal to accomplish. Even when chemical insecticides are used, the impact on the mosquito population is not permanent.\u201d<\/p>\n

The study also indicates that due to The Bahamas\u2019 abundance of natural habitats such as mangrove swamps, the application of insecticides might prove ineffective in dengue virus control in the long term.<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving a low density of the mosquito population does not always correlate to having a lower incidence of the disease within a specific geographic location,\u201d read the study. \u201cTherefore, The Bahamas should look beyond simply trying to control the vector population as a lasting solution to eradicating dengue fever. These alternative strategies need to include researching how the disease is transmitted in the mosquito vector, as well as how it may be prevented from becoming established in its human hosts.\u201d<\/p>\n

The study states that emphasis should to be placed on developing a national infectious disease research center that will focus primarily on discovering drug and vaccine targets against diseases such as dengue fever.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is an objective that will require the participation and partnership of multiple governmental and private organizations within The Bahamas,\u201d notes the study. \u201cThe Public Health Authority and the Department of Environmental Health, will have to share intellectual and material resources to successfully establish a national infectious research center in The Bahamas.\u201d<\/p>\n

Royston Jones Jr
\nNassau Guardian<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

According to the study, several recorded cases of the acute form of dengue fever in the Bahamas this year (dengue hemorrhagic fever) suggest a trend that dengue fever might return in future with increased severity.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_10223285771444175_51037792744":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[19],"class_list":["post-14599","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-lifestyle","tag-health"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14599","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/25"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14599"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14599\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14599"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14599"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bahamasb2b.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14599"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}