Dengue Fever – Bangladesh
- September 1, 2021
- 2 min read
Bangladesh recorded over 2000 cases and 343 hospitalized due to dengue in a span of 7 days. According to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), a total of 12,434 people were hospitalized this year.
Between July and September, nearly 52 people have died due to the deadly disease. Though most of the patients who were hospitalized have so far been released, 1282 are still undergoing treatment at hospitals in Dhaka, and 149 are being treated outside Dhaka.
Dengue is common in tropical regions with a high incidence of humid weather accompanying rain. Physical interventions like usage of mosquito nets, repellants, and treatment of open stranding water are considered preventive measures; stringent sanitation maintenance and hygiene can also help reduce the spread of the female mosquito population.
Photo: Aedes aegypti or yellow fever mosquito.
Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne disease caused by the dengue virus. Dengue is spread by several species of female mosquitoes but typically by a mosquito that has white markings on its legs and sides.
Dengue can exist anywhere that mosquitoes live and is fast becoming a global problem. As the world’s climate becomes warmer, the mosquito’s distribution has increased significantly in the past decades. Dengue is fast becoming a larger problem than malaria.
Symptoms may include a high fever, headache, vomiting, muscle and joint pains, and a characteristic skin rash. In a small proportion of cases, the disease develops into severe dengue, also known as dengue hemorrhagic fever. A later reinfection can also cause serious complications.
Controlling mosquito populations is the main way to prevent and reduce dengue. Wearing long-sleeved clothing and long trousers when outdoors is always a good idea. In countries where the disease is endemic, use mosquito netting over the bed if the bedroom is not air conditioned or screened.
The first record of a case of probable dengue fever is in a Chinese medical encyclopedia from the Jin Dynasty (265–420 AD) which referred to a "water poison" associated with flying insects. The primary mosquito vector, A. aegypti, spread out of Africa in the 15th to 19th centuries due in part to increased globalization secondary to the slave trade.
The origins of the Spanish word dengue are unknown, but it is possibly derived from "dinga" in Swahili, meaning a disease caused by an evil spirit.
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