An outbreak of dengue fever in Myitkyina, capital of Burma’s Kachin State, has claimed several lives, according to local residents.
Myitkyina’s public hospital wards are full of dengue patients and many residents are seeking medical attention in private clinics, local sources say. Most of the patients are children and elderly people.
“The situation is terrible,” said one local resident, Ma Grang.
Local hospitals and clinics are overburdened by the increasing number of cases, and Ma Grang said many patients waited in vain all day for treatment. The Kachin News Group reported that more then 120 children are being treated in a local hospital known as the “Children’s Ward.”
Hospital and clinic staff told The Irrawaddy they had no authority to give out information on the outbreak, which began in mid-June. No official death toll has been reported.
The Kachin News Group reported that a 16-year-old schoolgirl, Hkawng Naw, was among the recent victims,. She died on July 23.
Dengue fever outbreaks occur every year in Kachin State, but the current epidemic is the worst ever.
irrawaddy
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