A community cleanup in Palau may be responsible for a recent decrease in dengue fever cases, according to the country's public health bureau. Dr. Caleb Otto, the bureau's director, said the hospital has seen an average of three new suspected dengue fever cases daily during the past week. Admissions have also dropped to three per day, he added. Palau's Ministry of Health reported that the hospital was full in mid-December, when dengue fever patients filled the pediatric ward with up to 30 patients at a time. The number of dengue cases also led the hospital to cancel elective surgeries and open free, 24-hour clinics for people who feared they might have dengue fever.
Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne disease that usually causes a mild flu.
A more severe form of the disease is dengue hemorrhagic fever, which may be fatal. Authorities said the best way to combat the disease is to get rid of the old tires, cans and other artificial water containers where mosquitoes breed. He said Palau's health ministry does not want residents to relax their guard against the disease, because cases of dengue fever are still reported. Palau has had dengue fever epidemics in 1988 and 1995. Both outbreaks lasted several months.