US embassy cable - 05SANAA1031

UNCLAS SANAA 001031 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE - PLEASE PASS TO CDC. AMMAN - PLEASE PASS TO JOCK 
WHITTLESLEY. 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: TBIO, AMED, YM 
SUBJECT: UPDATE ON DENGUE FEVER OUTBREAK IN YEMEN: 133 
CONFIRMED CASES 
 
REF: SANAA 478 
 
1.  As of April 17, The World Health Organization (WHO) has 
detected 84 cases of dengue fever in the Hadramawt 
governorate since the outbreak began in late December.  These 
cases of dengue fever occurred in the port city of Mukulla 
and on the Hadramawt coastline along the Indian Ocean.  Added 
to 49 confirmed cases in Hodeidah, this brings the total 
count to at least 133 confirmed dengue cases in Yemen since 
the start of the outbreak. 
 
2. WHO Representative to Yemen Dr. Hashim al-Zein reports 
that a WHO epidemiology team visited the Hadramawt April 5 to 
11.  According to the team, there are no confirmed deaths or 
incidents of haemorragic fever, a potentially fatal 
complication of dengue fever, in the Hadramawt area.  Of the 
84 confirmed cases, 12 cases were detected in the major city 
of Mukulla, 66 were in Al-Hami, a small town 82 kilometers 
northeast of Mukulla, and a handful in other small villages. 
 
3. Children between the ages of five to 14 comprise 54 
percent of the cases, and 60 percent of the cases were male. 
The most common symptoms were: fever (100 percent), joint 
pain without swelling (athralgia, 78 percent), muscle pain 
(myalgia, 60 percent) and pain behind the eyes (retro-orbital 
pain, 30 percent).  The Yemeni Ministry of Health is relying 
on information from WHO and has no further information to 
report on the outbreak. 
 
3. Post released a March 7 warden message warning American 
citizens to avoid travel to Hodeidah due to the dengue fever 
outbreak.  Post will amend the warden message to include the 
Hadramawt per recent developments. 
Krajeski