Dengue outbreak continues steadily despite mosquito repelling

Efforts to kill mosquitos appear to have yielded little success until now as the outbreak of dengue fever has continued steadily with over 1,500 patients hospitalised daily.

In the 24 hours to Wednesday morning, the hospitals across Bangladesh admitted 1,626 patients with dengue fever, taking the total number so far this year to 57,995, which is more than the number of dengue patients nationwide around past two decades.

The daily rate of admittance of dengue patients was 1,572 in the 24 hours to Tuesday morning and 1,615 in the previous 24 hours, according to the Directorate General of Health Services.

After the ongoing outbreak started in early June, Bangladesh recorded highest 2,428 patients hospitalised with dengue on Aug 7 as the number of patients in the first week of

the month broke the record of July when the hospitals took in 16,253 dengue patients.

The situation continued for another week with the daily rate of hospitalised dengue patients topping 2,000.

It dropped during Eid-ul-Azha holidays, with 1,201 a day after the festival, but rose again and continued to be over 1,500, except one day when the number was 1,460.

Amid growing concerns over the outbreak, the two city corporations of Dhaka imported new mosquito repellents and started using these regularly before the Eid.

Relatives waiting in long queues for results of tests on patients, mostly with dengue fever, at the Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College Hospital in Dhaka on Sunday. Photo: Asif Mahmud Ove

Dr Meerjady Sabrina Flora, director of the government’s disease control agency, believes the authorities have bolstered mosquito repelling activities.

The director of the Institute of Epidemiology Disease Control And Research or IEDCR had warned last month that the outbreak would become severe if the breeding grounds of Aedes aegypti, the mosquito which bears dengue virus, are not destroyed.

Asked about the success in controlling the situation, she said on Sunday: “It appears good until now, though there are many areas we need to work in. But there is no doubt that the activities have been bolstered.”   

As new patients continued to get admitted to the hospitals, the total number stood at 39,534 in the first 21 days of August.

The government has confirmed reports of 47 deaths from dengue this year, but accounts obtained by bdnews24.com of authorities and doctors of different hospitals have put the toll at 174.

In Dhaka, the number of new dengue patients dropped to 711 from 750 of the 24 hours to Tuesday morning, but elsewhere, the total number rose to 915.

The number of patients receiving treatment in the hospitals, however, dropped slightly to 6,278 on Wednesday morning from 6,470 on Tuesday morning as the number of patients recovered and released after treatment rose.