HO CHI MINH CITY, April 1 (Xinhua) -- In the first quarter of this year, 173 people in Vietnam suffered from food poisoning, of whom three died, the country's Preventive Health Department said Monday.

In the same period last year, 502 people were affected by food poisoning, of whom three died.

In the first three months of this year, Vietnam spotted 41,900 dengue fever patients, including two fatalities; over 8,500 foot-and-mouth disease cases, including one death; and 84 viral encephalitis sufferers.

Vietnam currently has 209,070 HIV carriers, of whom 95,800 have become AIDS patients, the department said. To date, over 98,200 people in the country have died of AIDS-related diseases.