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Vice Chairman of the municipal People’s Committee Ngo Van Quy at the meeting (Photo: hanoimoi,com.vn) |
Health official alerts potential human bird flu infections, Hanoi sets tight control to prevent A/H7N9 outbreaks
Vietnam would place itself in a scenario in which human bird flu infections could has been detected so as to take drastic actions to prevent the intrusion of avian influenza viruses that are raging in next-door neighbour China, said Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long. He made the request at a meeting on March 3 with the Steering Committee for the Prevention and Control of Dangerous and Emerging Diseases to discuss ways to prevent highly virulent bird flu viruses which are able to transmit to humans. Deputy Director of the Health Ministry's Preventive Medicine Department Hoang Minh Duc said Vietnam has yet to detect any A/H7N9 infections in poultry or humans. It hasn't found any human A/H5N1 case from the outset of 2017. According to the Preventive Medicine Department, the epidemic of A/H7N9 virus was first recorded in China in March 2013 and caused by avian influenza. It has been spreading quickly in the country since October 2016 with 449 people contracting A/H7N9 virus, including 96 deaths, in the first two months of 2017. The A/H7N9 epidemic is hitting China's Yunnan and Guangxi provinces, which border seven Vietnamese provinces (Dien Bien, Lai Chau, Lao Cai, Ha Giang, Cao Bang, Lang Son, and Quang Ninh). About 1,000-10,000 people and 100-200 vehicles travel between the two countries through the border gates at these Vietnamese localities each day. Meanwhile, Vietnam recorded hotbeds of A/H5N1 virus in poultry in seven communes and wards of six districts and townships of central Nghe An province, Mekong delta Can Tho city, and southernmost Ca Mau province in 2016, said the Department of Animal Health under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. Since the beginning of 2017, A/H5N1 has been spotted in farms in the southern provinces of Bac Lieu, An Giang, Soc Trang, Dong Nai, northern Nam Dinh province and central Nghe An province while A/H5N6 has been recorded in central Quang Ngai province. Experts said some avian influenza viruses like H7N9, H5N2, and H5N8 that have yet to be reported in Vietnam may enter the country through smuggling as well as the trading and consumption of smuggled poultry or fowls with unclear origin, especially in northern border provinces. At the meeting, Deputy Minister Long said the country has made strong moves to prevent bird flu, but the viruses are developing complicatedly in China and could appear in Vietnam. Though a travel warning over bird flu has yet to be issued, people should consider restricting their travel to infected areas to avoid contracting the viruses, he added. Hanoi launches hotline for H7N9 avian flu preventionThe Hanoi Health Department has announced two hotlines, 0949396115 and 0969082115, for H7N9 avian flu prevention, heard an online meeting on plans to prevent diseases in humans in Hanoi on March 7. A drill to prevent H7N9 avian flu will be held by the municipal Health Department, the Agriculture and Rural Development department and the People's Committee of Thuong Tin District (Hanoi) on March 13. The move aims to improve the abilities of health officials in dealing with A/H7N9 avian flu, especially with the disease expanding in China and likely to spread to Vietnam. Authorities of Hanoi are proactively controlling trade, transportation and slaughter of poultry in the city as the risk of H7N9 avian influenza outbreaks in animals and humans is high. The municipal Department of Industry and Trade ordered local market watchdog teams to keep a close watch on the trade, transportation and slaughter of live birds, conduct inspections at areas where poultry is slaughtered and traded, especially wet markets. The teams have also set up quarantine checkpoints along main roads with staff working around the clock. The city's Department of Health has been providing frequent updates on the developments of the disease that allow authorities to design more effective preventive measures. | A chicken farm (Photo: VNA) |
The Department of Agriculture and Rural Development has imposed stricter fines on violations of disease prevention and quarantine and provided guides on properly cleaning the environment. Since the beginning of 2017, Hanoi has reported 366 dengue fever cases, 19 hand - mouth - feet disease cases and 12 whooping cough cases, among others. However, no deaths caused by the diseases have been reported. The disease prevention missions focus on updating the development of hazardous diseases in humans and closely monitoring cases to respond promptly, stressed Vice Chairman of the municipal People's Committee Ngo Van Quy, who chaired the meeting. He also affirmed Hanoi will provide sufficient funds to tackle the diseases.
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