1st dengue fever case
on Molokai reported

---

By Gary T. Kubota
gkubota@starbulletin.com

WAILUKU >> State health officials are investigating the first reported case of mosquito-borne dengue fever on Molokai.

Dr. Lorrin Pang, the state health administrator for Maui County, said the case was reported last Friday and health workers sprayed pesticide in the area around the person's home in Kaunakakai and also a residence where he stayed in East Molokai. Pang noted that the case was unconfirmed and results of the test were pending.

But he said health officials were taking aggressive steps by spraying residences of suspected cases.

Meanwhile, Hana registered a new clinical case of dengue fever Monday. Pang said the case, although unconfirmed, means any plan to declare the region dengue free by early December will have to be pushed back.

Pang said there needs to be a gap of several weeks in which there are no reported cases of dengue fever before he would be comfortable to declare Hana free of the disease. The standard, established by the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, calls for no new cases reported during "one mosquito lifetime" or about six weeks.

Before the recent report, the Hana region had not had a reported case since Oct. 16.

Pang said the number of reported cases has certainly decreased. At its peak, Hana residents were reporting from four to five cases a day and now the reports have dwindled to two to three a week, he said.

Pang said people have to understand they need to continue to reduce breeding sites for mosquitoes by eliminating places where standing water collects. "The current epidemic is not over," he said. "It could flare up at any time."

The virus, which includes a sudden high fever, sore bones, and rash on the palms of hands and feet, is transmitted by a mosquito that becomes infected by biting a person with dengue fever. Health officials note the virus cannot be transmitted from one human being to another.

Since the outbreak was reported on Sept. 12, there have been 52 confirmed cases on Maui. Four cases have been confirmed on Kauai and six have on Oahu, for a statewide total of 62. Health officials recently revealed that the Honolulu woman who tested positive for dengue fever lives in Makiki.

Meanwhile, the number of cases testing positive in preliminary screenings remained at seven yesterday. The number of reported illnesses being investigated rose to 357 from 331.