The Asian tiger mosquito is one of the vectors responsible for transmitting dengue fever. Photo: SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY
A federal epidemiology team has arrived in American Samoa to help with the response to a dengue fever outbreak that has gripped the territory.
Four people have died, 50 have been hospitalised, and 140 diagnosed with dengue as the outbreak enters its eighth week, with some health officials labeling it an epidemic.
The three-member team from the Centres for Disease Control arrived on Wednesday, with three more officials scheduled to arrive tonight.
The acting team leader of the CDC's dengue branch, Dr Tyler Sharp, says the team will help local authorities control the outbreak, and try to reduce further cases.
He says he's pleased with what he's seen of the response so far.
"We can't just take one approach with dengue. We can't just clean up, we can't just focus on medical education, we can't just focus on community awareness, we need to do all of it - we need to do it all at the same time. And from what I've seen so far, it sounds like all available resources are being dedicated to doing just that."
The US Centre for Disease Control's Dr Tyler Sharp.
