Phuket diarrhoea outbreak eases
published : 15 Jun 2023 at 14:00
writer: Gary Boyle
ORIGINAL SOURCE/WRITER: Achadthaya Chuenniran
A diarrhoea outbreak in Phuket is easing, while health officials have not yet determined its cause.
Dr Kittisak Aksornwong said on Thursday that the number of diarrhoea patients in Phuket began to rise on June 6, with 383 cases, and the cases peaked at 1,238 on June 9.
Starting from June 10, the number of patients started to decline.
The largest group of patients, accounting for just over a quarter of all cases, were aged 25-34 years old.
Most patients had mild symptoms and around 13% of all patients were admitted to hospitals.
Despite the improving situation, disease investigation and surveillance are ongoing, the doctor said.
Health officials had examined samples from six ice factories and three majoring drinking water plants in Phuket, but they did not find any signs of diseases.
Vocabulary
- decline: to become less or worse - ลดลง
- diarrhoea (noun): an illness in which waste matter is emptied from the bowels much more frequently than normal, and in liquid form - อาการท้องร่วง, ท้องเสีย, ท้องเดิน
- disease (noun): a health problem and problem with a person's body, often caused by an infection, either from a bacteria or virus - โรค
- ease (verb): decrease, fall - ลดลง
- mild: not strong - เบา, ไม่หนัก, ไม่รุนแรง
- outbreak: the sudden start of a disease - การระบาดของโรค
- patients (noun): people who are receiving medical treatment - คนป่วย, คนไข้
- sample: a small amount of a substance that is used for scientific or medical tests - ตัวอย่างทดลอง
- surveillance: the process of carefully watching a person or place - การเฝ้าตรวจตราอย่างเข้มงวด
- symptoms (noun): signs that someone has an illness - อาการ
