17 October 2023
By Daeun Lee
A Dhaka hospital in Bangladesh is crowded with Dengue Fever patients as the virus surges. This year, the country is struggling with a devastating outbreak, with over 200,000 cases and about 1,000 deaths. Last year’s death reached 281, but this year’s count has tripled.
Dengue Specialist, Dr. Gabriel Bashar added that “Dengue Fever, once limited to Dhaka from 2000 to 2018, is now spreading its effect to other cities since 2019. Whilst transmitted by mosquitoes, presents symptoms like high fever, headaches, muscle pain, and low white blood cell count.
The majority of infected patients could recover within a week, and less than 1% could to fatal results. Experts shared that climate change is contributing to the widespread of the Dengue virus.
The World Health Organization (WHO) reported an eightfold increase in cases worldwide from 2000 to last year.
WHO Global Coordinator, Raman Belayudhan said “Approximately half the world’s population is at risk in about 129 countries, estimating between 100 million to 400 million annual cases.”
Dengue cases are now showing signs in the United States and Europe. Peru declared a state of emergency in most regions.
With no particular vaccine available, preventive measures seem to be the only possible actions to take. Frequent visitors to endemic areas must be extra cautious due to higher risks upon reinfection.