The disease is transmitted by mosquitoes and is characterized by fever, rash, and severe pains in the joints. Health officials said there are two types of dengue, classical and hemorrhagic. Classical dengue is the mildest form. Hemorrhagic dengue makes a person bleed from the nose or gums, produces bruises and can be fatal. Angelica Garza de Garcia, the city s health director, said some suspected cases of classical dengue have been reported in Ejido Buenavista, a semi-rural neighborhood in far south Matamoros.
Stagnant rainwater is a breeding ground for the mosquitoes that carry the infection.
City officials try to fumigate neighborhoods prone to dengue outbreaks when state health department can t handle the job alone, she said. Rolando Garcia Conte, the city s director of environment control, said the city lucked out because recent rains didn t create potholes where water can accumulate. Garcia believes city officials have taken care of the potholes and learned how to drain streets to prevent the formation of large puddles of water. Last year at this time, we already had many cases of classical dengue, but the health department hasn t reported one single case.