The Hawaii Department of Health on Thursday reported a case of travel-related dengue in a visitor to Oahu.
According to a news release, the visitor has left Hawaii and was not considered infectious at the time of departure. The DOH has deemed the risk of local transmission as low.
DOH teams have since conducted inspections and carried out mosquito control measures in the area the visitor had been located.
Because this case involves a non-resident, DOH is not including the case in the state’s official dengue case count, which is at five cases statewide.
DOH reminds the public that dengue is not established in the state and is currently limited to travelers who have visited places where the virus is common. However, note that dengue can be transmitted when a mosquito bites an infected person then bites another person.
Mosquitoes need only a small amount of standing water to breed, therefore DOH officials remind the public to remove standing water around their properties to reduce the mosquito population and the potential risk of local transmission.
Items in which mosquitoes can lay eggs include buckets, small containers, planters, rain barrels, cups left outside, as well as water-catching plants such as bromeliads.
Dengue is a year-round risk in Central and South America (including Brazil and Mexico), Asia (including the Philippines), the Middle East, Africa and several Pacific Islands like American Samoa, the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands and the Republic of Palau. Dengue is also present in popular tourist destinations in the Caribbean, including Puerto Rico.
Countries including the Cook Islands, Samoa, Vietnam, Bolivia, Colombia, Guyana, Maldives, Mali, New Caledonia, Timor-Leste and Tonga have reported higher-than-usual numbers of dengue cases.
Travel tips
DOH advises travelers to review up-to-date, country-specific travel information on dengue risk at least four to six weeks before traveling. Travelers are advised to take precautions by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention when visiting dengue areas.
Precautions include using an Environmental Protection Agency-registered insect repellent, wearing long-sleeve shirts and long pants outdoors, sleeping in air-conditioned rooms or rooms with window screens, and using insecticide-treated bed nets.
After returning home
DOH urges travelers, who have been to dengue-present locales, to prevent mosquito bites for three weeks. If dengue symptoms develop within two weeks after returning, contact your healthcare provider.
Symptoms usually last two to seven days and range from mild to severe and include fever, nausea, vomiting, rash and body aches. Most people recover within a week though severe illness can occur, say officials.
Resources:
Information on mosquito control
