SANTA CRUZ, St Elizabeth – Health authorities in St Elizabeth suspect the death of two young boys in the parish over the past week may have been caused by the mosquito-borne disease dengue.

“We suspect dengue, but of course we have to await postmortem results,” St Elizabeth’s Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr Derrick Ledford, told the Observer yesterday.

He gave no names but Ledford said one victim was a five-year-old from Waterloo just outside Santa Cruz and the other an 11-year-old student of Munro College in Malvern.

The chief medical officer also said there were increased reports of fever cases with symptoms typical of dengue at health centres and hospitals throughout the parish.

Dengue fever, including the potentially fatal dengue haemorrhagic fever, is spread by the Aedes aegypti mosquito described as a domestic day-biting vector that breeds in the vicinity of homes and population centres. It likes to feed on humans.

Health specialists say dengue symptoms include high fever, severe headache, backache, joint pains, nausea and vomiting, eye pain and rash. The more deadly dengue haemorrhagic fever includes intense fever, nose and gum bleeding and possibly internal bleeding.

There have been 300 reported cases since the outbreak first came to light early last month.

On Tuesday, health minister Rudyard Spencer said his ministry would be spearheading a dengue prevention drive over the weekend in an attempt to prevent any further spread of the disease.

Yesterday, health authorities in St Elizabeth said they, too, were involved in preventative and educational efforts to curtail the outbreak.

“We have been involved in (anti-mosquito) fogging throughout the parish especially in population centres and in areas that have bodies of water,” said St Elizabeth’s parish manager for health, Alwyn Miller. He identified communities close to the Black River Morass as well as the Treasure Beach area as having taken priority. Areas with large school communities including Malvern had also been targeted, he said.

Health education units were also active in schools and communities trying to get the message across that citizens should ensure that as much as possible their yards and communities are free of stagnant water where mosquitoes breed.

“The Aedis aegypti mosquito is commonly found in homes, so residents need to look out for flower pots, tins, tyres and things like that to make sure they are not holding water. They need to really clean up their homes,” said Ledford.