Guangdong dengue fears reach fever pitch

South China's Guangdong Province is on high alert for dengue fever with more than 1,000 new cases reported every day since Monday.

Over 1,300 new cases were reported on Thursday, bringing the total to almost 18,000 including four fatalities, the provincial health and family planning commission said in a press release on Friday.

Cases have been reported in 19 out of 21 prefecture-level cities in Guangdong. The epidemic is at its peak and is very much worse than last year, said Yang Zhicong, deputy chief of Guangzhou disease control center.

"We should be on high alert, but not be overly nervous as we can take proactive measures and patients can be fully cured," said Yang.

Dengue is a mosquito-borne, potentially fatal disease. Health authorities have attributed the outbreak to high temperatures and wet weather in Guangdong, where the mosquito population is five times the normal level.

"The key point is that citizens should be aware of preventative measures and avoid mosquitoes at home and outdoors," said Yang.

Despite increased government measures, the number of cases is not expected to decrease until later this month when the weather turns cold, said Yang.

The Guangzhou center has been keeping a close watch on the mosquito population in the city, where it has over 450 monitoring stations. The population at 167 of those spots has reached a relatively safe level, but in villages and some streets numbers are still worryingly high.

The National Health and Family Planning Commission (NHFPC) has begun distribution of free mosquito repellent and handouts on mosquito control and issued a notice on Tuesday calling for efforts to cut numbers of mosquitoes, including eliminating reservoirs of stagnant water, the breeding grounds for the insects.

Tang Xiaoping, chief of the province's dengue task force, warned the elderly and infirm to be particularly careful. "It's the National Day holiday now and more people are travelling. They should be fully prepared as the dengue risk is also rising," said Tang.

The NHFPC suggests that those planning travel in south China, including Guangdong, Yunnan and Fujian, or Southeast Asia in general, take precautions against mosquitos -- like using repellent and wearing long pants and long sleeves -- and seek early medical treatment.