Dengue fever is spreading fast in Guangdong. More than 4,800 cases of the disease have been diagnosed since June, marking a ten year high, reports 163. The outbreak is believed to have originated in Nansha, south of Guangzhou, this summer.

Dengue fever has been found all over Guangzhou as well as Foshan, Zhongshan, Jiangmen, and Zhuhai, reports China Daily.

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Huang Fuchu, the director of the Yuexiu District health bureau, has warned it “might prove more difficult to control the disease than we imagined.”

Dengue fever, also known as breakbone fever, is spread by mosquitoes. Symptoms of the disease include fever, headache, muscle and joint pains, and a skin rash similar in appearance to measles. While rare, the disease can become fatal in cases when it escalates to become dengue hemorrhagic fever, or dengue shock syndrome.

Elderly people that have health problems with obstructed lungs, heart disease, and high blood pressure are particularly at risk. All elderly patients are instructed by the local health authorities to seek aid at first sign of contracting the disease.

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