Queensland Health has announced that the dengue outbreak in Cairns has worsened with two new cases of the disease diagnosed yesterday.

A total of 330 cases of type three dengue fever have been confirmed in Cairns since the outbreak began in early December last year but yesterday’s cases found in Cairns North are of a new strain.

Tropical Population Health Services medical director Dr Jeffrey Hanna from Queensland Health said they had detected two new cases of type two dengue which have probably come from Papua New Guinea and more people were at risk. “People who have had dengue previously risk serious health complications if they later contract another ‘type’ of dengue," he said.

There are three strains of dengue in North Queensland and Cairns currently has 323 cases of dengue (types 3 and 2), Townsville has 55 cases (types 1 and 2). The Cairns suburbs that are affected include Aloomba, Bayview Heights, Bungalow, Cairns North, Clifton Beach, Earlville, Edge Hill, Kewarra Beach, Machans Beach, Parramatta Park, Smithfield, Trinity Beach, Westcourt, Whitfield and Yorkeys Knob.

Hanna said, "We've got a serious ongoing problem with dengue mosquitoes in north Queensland, and when you have that mix of travellers with the virus on board and the dengue mosquito close by, you have the potential for an outbreak. We're very prone to outbreaks in north Queensland."

In an attempt to control dengue, Hanna said certain precautions must be taken to break the dengue breeding cycle in and around their homes. “Get rid of palm fronds, put sand in pot plant bases, empty containers and store them dry and clear roof guttering,” he said.

Dengue symptoms are a mild fever which may last up to a week and some people could experience a resurgence of fever and other symptoms that may last another two to three days. In its more severe form known as dengue haemorrhagic fever or dengue shock syndrome it can even turn fatal.

SES volunteers visited 1200 homes in the Cairns suburbs of Whitfield and Manunda recently and gave out free cans of Mortein surface spray and information. Whitfield has reported 65 cases of dengue.

Thanking the volunteers for their efforts Hanna said, “We urge residents to use surface spray in their homes immediately. The mosquito likes to hide in dark places so spray it under furniture, behind curtains and in cupboards.”