Hanoi (VNA) – About 130 Vietnameseand foreign medical experts gathered in Hanoi on June 12 at an international symposiumon the management, prevention and control of some diseases caused byArthropod-borne virus (Arbovirus), any of a group of viruses transmitted bymosquitoes, ticks or other arthropods.

Addressing the event, Deputy Minister ofHealth Nguyen Thanh Long stressed the complication of epidemics in the world inrecent years, adding that 150 out of 530 types ofArbovirushave been found harmfulto human and animal, he noted.

Vietnam and other Southeast Asian countriessuch as Thailand, Laos and Cambodia are among countries vulnerable to Arbovirus,especiallyAedes mosquito-borne diseases such as dengue fever and Zika. Lastyear, 219 Zika-infected cases were reported in Vietnam, said Long.

The Deputy Minister underscored that the symposiumis a chance for scientists to discuss and give national-level recommendations andsolutions to deal with dengue fever and Zika.

He called on participants to seek solutionsin diagnosis, treatment, supervision and prevention of arthropod vectors, thusresearching vaccines against the diseases for the community.

The recommendations will serve as referencefor dengue and Zika prevention and control strategies, he said.

Reports at the conference highlighted thatdengue fever is the communicable disease with fastest growth in the world. The WorldHealth Organisation, about 2,5 billion people, or 40 percent of the world populationare at risk of dengue fever infection, and 1.8 billion of them are in the Asia-Pacificregion.

Vietnam and ASEAN countries are in the mostvulnerable area to dengue fever. So far, no specialised medicines for thedisease have been found, while vaccine against the virus has yet to be usedwidely.

At the same time, climate change alongwiththe warmer earth and El Nino, means of transportation, uncontrolled urbanisationas well as migration make dengue fever prevention and control more difficult.

Meanwhile, Zika virus is ravaging theworld, sweeping through 82 countries and territories, 13 of which reportedhuman-to-human transmission and 29 recorded microcephaly in infants, and 20recognised polyradiculonevrites.

Participants also made suggestions on howto apply improvement measures to suit each country, the dengue fever situationin Vietnam and the region, as well as necessary measures to prevent and controlAedes mosquito-borne diseases in the region.-VNA