In Reply to: Dengue fever alert. posted by ZEKE on Tuesday, 28. December 2010 at 23:50 Bali Time:
you can get it if you holiday in cairns/cape tribulation or darwin/kakadu etc. It is a tropical disease so be careful about stirring up hype. Its always good to alert people but don't incite panic.
Excerpt from Qld health web site:- Dengue in North Queensland
Outbreaks
Cairns - Westcourt & Parramatta Park
Local transmission of dengue fever has been confirmed in the Cairns suburbs of Westcourt (See map) and Parramatta Park (See map).
Date outbreak declared
29 August 2010
Number of cases: 19
Type of dengue: 2
Townsville - Hermit Park & Mundingburra
Local transmission of dengue fever has been confirmed in the Townsville suburbs of Hermit Park and Mundingburra (See map).
Date outbreak declared
23 July 2010
Number of cases: 26
Type of dengue: 2
What you can do
To protect yourself from dengue fever, you should:
Get rid of mosquito breeding sites in homes and yards, especially pot plant bases, tyres, and buckets used for striking plant cuttings. See fact sheet.
Use insect repellent - wear personal repellent during the day and reapply it according to the label.
Use plug-in mosquito zappers, and use cockroach surface spray under tables, chairs and beds in the home.
Spray insect surface spray in dark and shady places where the mosquito likes to hide (eg. under furniture, inside cupboards, behind curtains).
If you, or anyone in your household have any symptoms of dengue, apply insect repellent and see a doctor immediately.