Workers at District 5 Centre of Preventive Medicine are preparing to spray for Zika mosquitoes
The city People's Committee yesterday also held an urgent meeting with local hospitals and relevant agencies to discuss measures to deal with the situation.
11 out of 24 districts in the city have reported infections, including Binh Thanh, Tan Phu, Binh Tan, Hoc Mon, Can Gio, and Districts 2, 4, 5, 9, 10 and 12.
Ho Chi Minh City is offering more advice and tests for pregnant women amidst fear of the Zika virus.
Large hospitals including Hung Vuong and Tu Du have provided Zika-related advice and tests under Ministry of Health orders. Newly-born babies there are also examined for microcephaly.
Tran Ngoc Hai, Deputy Director of the Tu Du Hospital, which specialises in obstetrics and gynaecology, said there had been an increase in the number of pregnant women asking about Zika, with one in five women concerned about the mosquito-borne virus.
Whenever an expectant mother shows suspect symptoms, medical workers take samples for testing and give them necessary information, he added.
One problem in screening for Zika is that the symptoms can be mistaken for flu, Hai said, advising pregnant women to get regular check-ups and tests when they have any two symptoms including fever, rash, arthralgia or conjunctivitis.
On October 30, the General Department of Preventive Medicine under the Ministry of Health confirmed Vietnam’s first microcephaly Zika case in the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak.