The spread of dengue fever, a tropical disease spread through mosquitoes, is unusual. Dengue fever, which was considered an endemic disease in South America and Southeast Asia, has recently spread rapidly throughout the Americas and Europe, excluding Canada. The UN’s Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) announced last month that the number of dengue fever cases in the Americas exceeded 3.5 million, a three-fold increase compared to the same period last year, calling it “the worst situation ever.”
Experts are warning that Korea is not a safe zone either. Due to the influence of global warming, the Korean Peninsula, including Jeju Island, is changing to a subtropical climate suitable for the habitat of vector mosquitoes (Aedes aegypti and Aedes mosquitoes) carrying the dengue virus.
In an e-mail interview with the JoongAng Ilbo on the 25th, Kim Eun-seok (50), deputy director of the World Vision Development Cooperation Project Team, an infectious disease specialist working to prevent the spread of dengue fever in Lima, the capital of Peru, South America, said, “The root of the fear of dengue fever is the climate crisis.” “Both countries and individuals must participate in efforts to prevent the climate crisis,” he emphasized. Deputy Director Kim has been focusing on activities to improve the health of mothers and infants, prevent parasite infections, and prevent and treat malaria and dengue fever in Africa and South America. In 2022, he received the Presidential Citation and the Lee Tae-seok Service Award at the 17th Korea Overseas Service Award.
Q: I heard that the situation in Peru is serious. The local atmosphere.
A: “Originally in Peru, dengue fever was an endemic disease limited to the Amazon region. In fact, in coastal cities like Lima, dengue fever was someone else’s problem. However, as the number of dengue fever patients rapidly increases, the fear that ‘anyone can get it’ is spreading. Some medical staff on the coast are new to dengue fever, so they endanger patients by providing incorrect diagnosis and treatment. Now, Amazon’s experienced doctors are visiting the city to provide dengue fever information.”
Q: Why are we afraid of the spread of dengue fever?
A: “Once dengue fever occurs, there is a high possibility that residents will be infected simultaneously. Also, unlike common infectious diseases where antibodies develop during primary infection and symptoms are alleviated during secondary infection, dengue fever develops severely during secondary infection. The pain felt at this time is described as ‘the pain of breaking bones.’ Due to internal bleeding, low blood pressure, and organ damage, people suffer from high fever, chills, and vomiting, and in severe cases, they can even lose their lives. The infection rate is fast, it is painful, and the risk of severe progression is high, and there is still no clear cure. “This is the fear of dengue fever that has spread beyond South America to the Americas and Europe.”
Q: I heard that Korea is not a ‘dengue fever safe zone’ either.
A: “I hope you remember the lessons of COVID-19. An infectious disease that is prevalent in one place can spread throughout the world, and there is no way to stop it at the national level. The same goes for dengue fever. The spread of dengue fever is intertwined with the climate crisis. Prolonged periods of high temperature and humidity, with alternating floods and droughts, lead to a significant increase in mosquitoes and the spread of dengue fever. To prevent the spread of dengue fever, modeling work to estimate trends in dengue fever in advance based on climate change data in Korea and policy support for early diagnosis and treatment are needed. Above all, we must ultimately participate in investments and efforts to prevent climate change.”
Q: Why did you choose to practice medicine in Peru?
A: “After graduating from medical school, I worked at Kosin University Gospel Hospital, and then did medical work in the Peruvian Amazon for three years (2004-07) through the ‘International Cooperation Doctor’ program of the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA). He was shocked to encounter numerous tropical infectious diseases that had not been seen in Korea. The German doctor I met at Amazon at the time was also impressive. Even though he suffered from diabetes, he was devoted to providing medical services in the harsh conditions of the Amazon. He told me, ‘The only life I live, the most valuable and happiest thing in life is to have my talents used where they are most needed.’ After returning to Korea, he worked at Samsung Seoul Hospital and Anyangseam Hospital, and eventually returned to Peru via Africa. “After 20 years, he met a German doctor again in the Peruvian Amazon, and seeing his still passion won his heart.”
Q: If you work in Africa or South America, you will likely be exposed to various endemic diseases.
A: “I’m fine, but it hurts when my family suffers. While I was in Africa, my second child, who had just turned his first birthday, contracted malaria. The malaria medicine was particularly bitter, and no matter how much I tried to give it to the child, it kept spitting it out. I was so afraid that I might lose my child while holding him all night while he was suffering from a high fever. “I still feel the relief I felt when I recovered.”
Q: It would be possible to go on medical volunteer work while working in Korea.
A: “Personally, I like working ‘full-time’ locally. Diseases are often the end result of various factors in the community, such as gender discrimination, economic difficulties, and lack of understanding of the disease. It seems that there is a solution that can only be found when living together as residents and neighbors. This is the same reason why we work under World Vision rather than a hospital. “We were able to carry out practical and meaningful health activities because we formed deep ties with local people through community-centered activities and built trust with the local government.”
Q: In Korea, there is a strong perception that being a doctor is a profession that guarantees economic comfort and stability.
A: “At least the doctors around me often seem to work with a sense of duty. Doctors deal with life. So, I have no choice but to become serious about everything and think deeply about life and death. I think that in Korea, the perception of the profession of doctors needs to change to create a healthier society. “My heart aches when I hear the news coming from Korea recently.”
Hyungsoo Park ([email protected])
Tags: Pain broken bones dengue fever spread .. Korean doctor Peru blames climate crisis
-
