Titumir College student among two more dead as dengue patients top 32,000

The number of people hospitalised with dengue across Bangladesh so far this year has reached a record 32,340 with two more becoming the latest fatalities.

A total of 8,707 dengue patients were undergoing treatment on Wednesday morning, according to the Directorate General of Health Services.

The number of new cases in the 24 hours to Wednesday morning was 2,428; 1,275 of those being in the capital. The hospitals across Bangladesh recorded 2,348 new dengue cases in the previous 24 hours.   

Both the latest fatal cases occurred in Dhaka, the epicentre of the outbreak.

They include a student of Government Titumir College.

Mahedi Hasan, a postgraduate student of economics, died at the United Hospital on Wednesday afternoon.

He was hospitalised in a critical condition after Tuesday midnight, Staff Nurse Kazi Shyamoli told bdnews24.com.

Mahedi, hailing from Cumilla’s Muradnagar, resided at the college’s Shaheed Akkasur Rahman Ankhi Hall at Mohakhali.

Mahedi Hasan

He was admitted to the Bangladesh Medical College Hospital around a week ago with “extreme fever”, according to ‘Wahid’, one of his friends at the college.

Mahedi was transferred to the United Hospital when his condition deteriorated, Wahid told bdnews24.com.

The count of platelet in Mahedi’s blood dropped below 17,000 per microliter, Wahid said, quoting doctors. The normal level of platelets in blood is between 150,000 and 450,000 per microliter.

The other death from dengue was reported in the Dhaka Medical College Hospital.

The deceased, Awalad Hossain, is a readymade garment trader from Munshiganj.

He died around two hours after being admitted to the hospital around 2:30am on Wednesday.

With Awalad’s demise, the death toll from dengue in the DMCH rose to 18, Dr Md Nasir Uddin, an assistant director at the government hospital, said.

The government has recorded 23 deaths from dengue so far this year and said it was reviewing the other reports while the media have listed more than 90 lives claimed by the disease.