Press Releases

Anti-mosquito actions carried year-round regardless of surveillance indices

The Permanent Secretary for Health, Welfare and Food (Food and Environmental Hygiene), Mrs Carrie Yau, said today (September 29) that anti-mosquito operation would be carried out year around notwithstanding low ovitrap indices in some districts.

"Apart from ovitrap index, we also look at a basket of factors to monitor the extent of the mosquito problem," she said.

These factors were:

- information from health authorities of nearby cities or countries and the World Health Organisation (WHO);
- number of imported and local mosquito-borne disease cases;
- number of mosquito complaints received; and
- feedback from District Councils and local personalities.

Mrs Yau, who is also the Chairperson of the Anti-Mosquito Steering Committee, said: "In early September, the steering committee has issued a fresh round of directive urging all departments to upkeep their anti-mosquito work after a comprehensive risk assessment based on the above factors."

Vector surveillance and anti-mosquito operations were on-going exercises to help control mosquito breeding. Ovitrap survey, dedicated to monitor the breeding of dengue fever vectors, aedes albopictus and aedes aegypti, was only one of the tools for monitoring mosquito breeding.

"The public can rest assured that the Government will not relax the measures to combat the public health threat caused by dengue simply looking at one single factor such as low survey results," Mrs Yau said.

The Anti-Mosquito Steering Committee, an inter-departmental group that coordinated anti-mosquito actions from the centre, continued to issue directive to upkeep vigilance even in the dry winter months as part of its preventive strategy.

"The Department of Health has been in close liaison with the WHO and nearby health authorities. Immediate actions will be taken to alert the public and travellers if there is a change in the disease situation and the necessary precautionary actions to take," Mrs Yau said.

The number of imported and local dengue fever and Japanese encephalitis were also indicators of the potential threat of mosquito-borne diseases. The public had been urged to stay alert and to adopt anti-mosquito measures.

"We believe the growing awareness of the public on the need of taking preventive measures may have contributed to the drop of imported cases of mosquito-borne disease. The continuous anti-mosquito actions taken by the Government departments and the public have also helped prevent the occurrence of local cases," she said.

The Government had allocated over $200 million on anti-mosquito work in 2006/07. Some 400 in-house staff were deployed to carry out anti-mosquito work. The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) had increased the number of contract staff who conducted anti-mosquito work from 900 in 2003 to 1,600 in 2006. Anti-mosquito work was a continuous programme undertaken not only in the summer but throughout the year.

Figures on the number of dengue fever and Japanese encephalitis cases from 2003 to 2006 (January to August) were listed in Table 1.


Ends/Friday, September 29, 2006
Issued at HKT 20:04

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Attachment:
Number of dengue fever and Japanese encephalitis cases