KLANG, January 22 –  Dengue fever cases in Selangor have continued to increase in the first two weeks of this year, with 1,727 cases being reported to the Selangor State Health Department.

Chairperson on the permanent committees for Health, Plantation Workers & Poverty and Caring Government Dr A Xavier Jayakumar said among the districts which reported the highest cases were Hulu Langat, Petaling, Gombak and Klang.

He said, local authorities (PBT) through their Health Departments have been instructed to strengthen their efforts to destroy mosquito breeding areas which were among the reasons for an increase in the outbreak.

Dr A Xavier also advised the public to always ensure their home compounds were clean to get rid of breeding areas.

“Preventive measures such as this are in line with The Ministry of Health’s call for local communities to take responsibility in ensuring their homes and work places are free from aedes mosquitoes by spending 10 minutes each week to do their own checks,” he said at a media conference after a working visit to the Tengku Ampuan Rahimah Hospital here in conjunction with Chinese New Year celebrations. 

He also distributed 148 food hampers and baby equipment to post-natal and child patients in conjunction with next week’s celebrations.

He added, several steps had been taken to control the outbreak and reduce the number of cases in the state.

According to him, PBT and Health Departments in every district would monitor all areas especially those which had been identified as high-risk.

“We have asked them to do fogging and house checks from time to time to reduce these cases,” he said.

Last year, 49,335 dengue fever cases were reported in the country with 21,262 cases in Selangor.

Meanwhile, on the chikungunya outbreak, he said 455 cases were reported to the Selangor Health Department last year.

He said, from that number 122 cases were confirmed to be chikungunya.

“The districts of Hulu Selangor, Hulu Langat, Petaling and Sepang are among the areas which have been identified as being involved in this case,” he explained.
 
This year, he said, 98 cases had been reported but the actual lab results had yet to be obtained. – MURIZA ABDUL HAMID