Cox’s Bazar now a dengue hotspot
Health officials yesterday issued a warning that the number of dengue cases is increasing rapidly, well ahead of its typical outbreak season.
They also said the Cox's Bazar district has become a dengue hotspot.
The rainy months of June through September are typically considered the dengue season in Bangladesh.
According to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), since January this year, a total of 1,771 dengue cases have been detected countrywide, of which, 426 were in Cox's Bazar.
In addition, a total of 1,066 cases were identified among Rohingya persons residing in various camps.
Health officials said contagion prevention and case management have become "difficult" in Rohingya camps.
"Members of the Rohingya community lack awareness of dengue disease. And working among them is difficult since they are from different cultural backgrounds," said Prof Dr Nazmul Islam, director of the Disease Control Unit at DGHS, at a conference held at the DGHS headquarters yesterday.
In response to a query, he said since the Rohingyas reside in a small area and there is no water distribution system, they conserve water and the ideal breeding ground for Aedes mosquitoes is clean water.
Stressing the need to destroy breeding sources immediately, Nazmul said failure to do so at this stage, which is prior to the monsoon season, could result in a more dire situation during the full monsoon season.
In the past 24 hours leading up to yesterday morning, 67 individuals suffering from dengue fever were admitted to hospitals. Of those, 9 were from areas outside Dhaka.
As per the DGHS report, there are currently 209 dengue patients receiving treatment at hospitals, out of which 29 are from outside of Dhaka.
Thirteen individuals have died so far due to dengue fever this year.
Meanwhile, 1,549 have been discharged from hospitals.
Last year, the number of deaths caused by dengue was 281, with a total of 62,382 cases reported. Out of these cases, 23,162 were reported outside of Dhaka.
During the press conference, Prof Ahmedul Kabir, additional director general (planning and development) at DGHS, cautioned against the practise of overcharging patients for dengue testing.
In 2020, the government established a fixed fee for dengue tests; in public hospitals, Tk 100, and at private hospitals Tk 500.
"We have published guidelines for dengue treatment. Every physician must follow them," Prof Ahmedul Kabir said.
According to his statement, hospitals have received instructions to make necessary preparations for treating patients amid the outbreak. Besides, health officials have been urged to admit dengue patients to the hospital before it's too late.
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