Brasília reached the number of 205 deaths due to dengue, this year alone, according to data released this Monday (1/4) by the Health Department of the Federal District (SES-DF). Another 55 deaths for the same reason are still being investigated, according to the ministry, which is still checking the possibility of confirming another 190,000 cases caused by Aedes aegypti bites.
Governor Ibaneis Rocha also announced, this Monday (1/4), through his social network profile, the authorization to set up 11 tents to care for those infected with arbovirus (a disease transmitted by mosquitoes). Furthermore, he reported that the hiring of 200 doctors and the expansion of the ICU at the Children’s Hospital by 10 beds were approved.
Even with measures taken by the Federal District government to control and reverse the growth of the epidemic, patients still suffer. The symptoms (headaches, body aches, fever, weakness, etc.) prevent them from going to school, working and, in some cases, they are so severe that people cannot even get out of bed. The Correio report spoke to some of these patients who described what they are experiencing.
Problems
In the hydration tent set up in Santa Maria, Hudson Barbosa, 28 years old, was waiting, this Monday (1/4), looking dejected, for the result of a test. He, who works with renovations and transformations in the appearance of cars, said that late last Friday afternoon he began to feel pain in his joints, which spread throughout his body. At night, they had covered his eyes and the discomfort was such that he was unable to sleep.
Even so, he said he worked on the weekend to meet the commitments made to his clientele. However, the illness completely prevented him from maintaining his schedule. He reported that he had to find the courage to dismiss work that appeared, this Monday (1/4), at his establishment and, with great difficulty due to the inconvenience, he looked for the Santa Maria tent. He regretted that, in addition to having to take time off from his professional duties, he also had to leave the responsibility of taking care of him and their four children to his wife.
Barbosa’s situation was very similar to that of Claudia Alves’s daughter, 44. She accompanied the girl, 15, who was so weakened by dengue that she was unable to go to class. The girl said that other students are having to leave the Setor Leste Secondary Education Center, which she attends, for the same reason.
During the interview, she complained of having a headache, fever and nausea, and that before going to the tent she fainted. It was these reasons that alarmed Claudia to seek specialized help. “It’s a very difficult situation, in a few days I have a test, I won’t be able to get the content and then I’ll have to rush to catch up”, lamented the teenager.
All the people Correio spoke to said that the symptoms they feel are so strong that they imagine they have other illnesses. Businesswoman Rayane Cristina Peres, 31, could barely open her eyes while waiting for medical help, for example.
He said that he had been feeling a lot of headache since Saturday, and that his fever reached 41 degrees. In addition to these problems, Rayane had a nosebleed, this Monday (1/4), and was therefore classified as a patient in serious condition. “I had dengue fever six years ago, but it doesn’t even compare to what I’m feeling now. No medication has reduced my fever. I can’t eat and even (drinking) water makes me feel nauseous,” she complained. Since the first day of symptoms, the businesswoman has been unable to open her store and, still very ill, she has no idea when she will resume work.
New tents
With the announcement, this Monday (1/4), by Ibaneis, the federal capital will now have 20 service tents. The company that won the bid to install the 11 new structures was Santa Casa de Misericórdia de Oliveira dos Campinhos, which will also manage these spaces and the health professionals who will work in these units. The regional government also informed that patient reception will be reinforced in Gama, Guará and Planaltina, later this week.
Correio contacted the company providing the services to find out when the assembly will be completed, and asked for details on how the professionals will work in the tents. However, there was no response until the closing of this edition.
Immunization
According to the Health Department of the Federal District, currently, around 71 thousand doses of dengue vaccines have been administered, with more than 50 thousand immunizing patients between 10 and 14 years old. However, around 20,000 doses of the vaccine, with an expiration date of April 30, have not yet been administered.
In turn, the National Immunization Program (PNI) will start offering the vaccine to municipalities with a high incidence of the disease. Therefore, as determined by the Ministry of Health, unused doses that present a risk of loss due to expiration date must be relocated to other cities.
SES-DF reported that, of the vaccines that have not yet been used in the region, 11,720 will be sent to Amapá by the ministry, which will renew the DF’s stock with vaccines with a higher validity period.
