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China encephalitis outbreak kills 18 children
Beijing, June 20: An outbreak of Japanese encephalitis in southern China has killed at least 18 children, prompting the government to launch an emergency vaccination programme, health officials and media reports said today.
Beijing, June 20: An outbreak of Japanese encephalitis in southern China has killed at least 18 children, prompting the government to launch an emergency vaccination programme, health officials and media reports said
today.
At least 211 people have contracted encephalitis in Guangdong province, where paddy fields provide a breeding ground for mosquitos that carry the disease, newspapers reported.
The disease, which causes the brain to swell, usually strikes southern china every summer, between May and July. It is untreatable and is usually fatal in 30 percent of cases, according to the World Health Organisation.
The WHO is monitoring the outbreak, but doesn't consider it to be out of control, said a spokesman for the UN agency in Beijing.
"This is a seasonal occurrence," said spokesman Bob Dietz. "If the numbers are accurate, you have a death rate of about 10 per cent, which is actually low."
Cases have been reported in areas throughout Guangdong, including seven in the provincial capital of Guangzhou, China's southern business center.
Many are children of migrant workers, who often aren't covered by the government health programme, which includes vaccinations for encephalitis, the newspaper 'Xin Kuai News' said.
Bureau Report
The disease, which causes the brain to swell, usually strikes southern china every summer, between May and July. It is untreatable and is usually fatal in 30 percent of cases, according to the World Health Organisation.
The WHO is monitoring the outbreak, but doesn't consider it to be out of control, said a spokesman for the UN agency in Beijing.
"This is a seasonal occurrence," said spokesman Bob Dietz. "If the numbers are accurate, you have a death rate of about 10 per cent, which is actually low."
Cases have been reported in areas throughout Guangdong, including seven in the provincial capital of Guangzhou, China's southern business center.
Many are children of migrant workers, who often aren't covered by the government health programme, which includes vaccinations for encephalitis, the newspaper 'Xin Kuai News' said.
Bureau Report