Dengue fever cases in Guangzhou reaches 10-yr high

Authorities in Guangdong Province on Sunday pledged to strengthen efforts to monitor and control dengue fever, with 4,800 cases reported in the province for 2014 as of Friday.

A total of 1,021 cases had been reported in Guangzhou alone as of September 4, the highest in nearly 10 years, the Guangzhou Daily reported Friday.

Cities including Guangzhou, Foshan, Zhuhai and Jiangmen all saw outbreaks of the disease during the summer. Dengue fever is a viral infection that can cause rashes, bone pain and even death.

Experts predicted that if the mosquito-borne epidemic is not brought under control within the month, cases in Guangzhou this year may break 10,000.

Local residents' reluctance to cooperate with government-led mosquito eradication and survey efforts have also hindered the control of the epidemic, experts said.