Daily count: Bangladesh records 14 dengue cases, no deaths

The number of cases since Jan 1 rises to 959, and the death toll remains unchanged at 14

Hospitals in Bangladesh have registered 14 new cases of dengue fever in a day, taking the tally of infections since Jan 1 to 959 after the worst outbreak last year.

The death toll from the mosquito-borne disease remained unchanged at 14 as no deaths were reported in the daily count published by the Directorate General of Health Services on Friday.

The new cases included six in Dhaka and eight outside the capital.

Dhaka also accounted for 47 of the 132 dengue patients undergoing treatment at hospitals in the morning. The other districts were treating 85 dengue patients.

In 2023, Bangladesh recorded 321,179 hospitalisations and 1,705 deaths from the viral disease and the outbreak has continued this year.

Rising temperatures, along with a lack of effective measures to kill the Aedes aegypti mosquito, the known carrier of the virus, are seen as the reasons behind the deadliest outbreak last year.

Experts say dengue may affect Bangladesh throughout the year from now on, not just in monsoon, if the authorities do not move to prevent the disease.