Health Minister Dr. Abdulla Khaleel has appealed to the public to remain calm despite the resurgence of filaria - a mosquito-borne contagious disease.
Speaking at a campaign launch for food safety awareness, Khaleel said there is a lot of concern among the people due to the resurgence of filaria.
"I ask you to not worry. We have tested Maldivians on the island where most cases were recorded. That's Kulhudhuffushi. We tested 155 Maldivians there and none of them tested positive. The results show us that the disease is imported," he said.
Khaleel said although the disease is transmitted by mosquitoes, it is not so easily transmitted from person to person.
The disease is spread by repeated infections of the disease-carrying Culex mosquitoes, he highlighted.
The system is well designed to control the disease and the patient needs to be given medicine only once after diagnosis, he noted. After that, the person will not spread the disease to others, he added.
Khaleel further said that test kits for the diagnosis of filariasis and medicines for treatment are also available in Maldives and more are being acquired.
In order to control the importation of diseases from foreign workers into the country, health check-ups have been made mandatory and testing for filariasis will be mandatory at the time of health check-ups, he said.
In addition to the current tests, other tests will also be made compulsory, he added.
