The Ministry of Health refuted the fake about Dengue fever in Ukraine
31 July 2024 03:22
Disinformation about the spread of Dengue fever in Ukraine is spreading online. This is a fake spread by the aggressor country in its Telegram channels. This was reported by "Komersant Ukrainian" with reference to the Ministry of Health.
“VoxCheck fact-checkers have analysed a fake spread by Russian propaganda on Telegram channels. As it turned out, they distorted the words of a Ukrainian infectious disease doctor who wrote about the symptoms of Dengue fever in her personal blog. The Ministry of Health urges Ukrainians to be careful and check information on the official resources of the Ministry of Health,” the statement said.
According to the WHO, Dengue, previously typical of African and Asian regions, is now spreading to other areas. As of June 2024, the WHO has reported more than 10 million cases since the beginning of the year.
“Ukraine is not among these countries,” the ministry assured.
The main threat to the spread of Dengue in Europe is the aedes albopictus mosquito – the “tiger mosquito”. Among other things, they carry the Dengue virus. This species of mosquito has been recorded in such EU countries as Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Malta, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Spain and the United Kingdom. In Ukraine, “tiger mosquitoes” are common on the territory of the temporarily occupied Crimea. The northern limit of their distribution is in Hungary, near the Ukrainian Transcarpathia. However, there are currently no reasons to declare Ukraine an endemic region.
In mainland Europe, cases of imported virus were reported in 2024, but no local cases have been reported so far. Dengue fever is observed only in patients who have previously travelled to endemic or epidemic areas.
“The Ministry of Health has not reported any threat of Dengue fever in Ukraine. There may be isolated “imported” cases in Ukraine, but this is not evidence of a massive spread of the virus or an epidemiological threat,” the Ministry of Health said.
Dengue fever is an acute infectious disease. The incubation period lasts 3-15 days. The disease usually begins suddenly: chills, headaches, severe pain in the back, sacrum, spine, and joints (especially the knees). Fever is observed in all patients, and the body temperature quickly rises to 39-40°C.
