Hospitals in Ho Chi Minh City over the last few weeks received nearly 150 people infected with dengue fever every day, a two-fold increase compared to the figure in July, according to the city's Preventive Medicine Centre.

Hoc Mon district was the hot-spot for the outbreak of the mosquito-borne disease in the city, with dozens of infected people being hospitalised every day, the centre said.

A total of 4,500 people have contracted dengue fever this year in the city.

Last week, the Dengue Fever Ward in Children Hospital No.1 received more than 200 in-patients.

Nearly 70 children have been treated at the Children Hospital No.2 over the last two weeks.

About 150 people, including 50 children, are being treated at the HCM City Hospital for Tropical Diseases.

The hospital has treated more 2,500 patients with dengue fever this year, including 900 children.

Throughout September, the centre is carrying a one-month campaign to spray insecticide and clean up the environment to destroy mosquitoes and larvae at schools.
The southern provinces of Binh Duong and Binh Phuoc have also recorded serious outbreaks of dengue fever.

The number of patients with dengue fever had increased steadily since the beginning of last month, with more than 100 children receiving treatment every day, said Tran Thi Minh Nguyet, head of Binh Duong General Hospital's Pediatrics Ward.

More than 250 in-patients were being treated at the hospital, doubling last month's figure, Nguyet said.
The Binh Phuoc province's Preventive Medicine Centre has recently announced 14 "hot" sites for dengue fever that have had a total of 250 cases.

According to the Ho Chi Minh City Pateur Institute, in the past, dengue fever in the south was popular among children, but since 2000, the number of adult patients with dengue fever has increased.

The number of adults infected with dengue fever accounted for 45 percent of the total cases in 2013 against 24 percent in 2000.-VNA