Saikat Bhowmik, Senior Correspondent
Dhaka: After August and September, dengue broke one record after another, but it was expected that the outbreak would decrease in October. However, even in October, the dengue situation did not improve. 359 people died of dengue this month, which is more than in August. Earlier, 342 people died of dengue in August. The following month in September, dengue claimed another 396 lives. According to that, in these three months, thousands of people have died due to dengue in the country.
During the dengue outbreak, the number of dengue patients in these three months (August-October) was also the highest in the history of the country. In these three months, 2 lakh 19 thousand 343 people were admitted to different hospitals of the country due to dengue. Bangladesh has never seen so many people affected and died in hospitals due to dengue in three consecutive months.
Dengue cases and death statistics in October
According to the Health Emergency Operation Center and Control Room of the Department of Health, the number of dengue patients in October was 67,769. Among them, 359 people died. Among those who lost their lives in dengue this month, 209 were women, 150 were men. According to that, 58 percent of those who died in dengue were women.
Although the death of women in dengue is more, men were again ahead among the victims. In this month, 39 thousand 438 men and 28 thousand 381 women were admitted to the hospital due to dengue. According to that, 58 percent of dengue patients were men.
Statistics of dengue cases and deaths in the last three months
According to the Health Emergency Operation Center and Control Room of the Department of Health, the number of dengue patients in August was 71,976. In September, the number of dengue cases in the country exceeded that number. 79 thousand 598 dengue patients were admitted to the hospital this month. In October, however, the number of dengue patients decreased slightly to 67 thousand 769 people. According to that, in these three months, the number of dengue cases in the country was 2 lakh 19 thousand 343 people.
The number of deaths due to dengue also surpassed August in September and October. According to the information of the Department of Health, 342 people died of dengue in August. There, 396 dengue patients died in the country in 30 days in September. Then in October, 359 people died of dengue. But before this, in the 22 years from 2000 to 2022, a total of 853 people died of dengue in the country.
Dengue will decrease in November?
Public health experts had assumed that the dengue outbreak would decrease this month assuming that there would not be much rain in October. But even in October, the rainfall did not stop. Because of this, the breeding of Aedes mosquito could not be reduced, so the dengue was uncontrolled. They are now looking forward to the dry weather of November.
Virologist and assistant professor of Shaheed Suhrawardy Medical College of the capital. Md. Zahidur Rahman said, ‘Due to climate change, heatwaves have suddenly increased all over the world, on the other hand, heavy rains have also increased. Out of the scheduled season, the rain has also increased. As a result, there will be dengue all year round. But its prevalence will be highest from the beginning to the end of the rainy season.’
Zahidur Rahman also said that last year (in 2022) the death due to dengue was highest in the month of October. This year also 359 people died due to dengue in October. Now if there is no such rain in November and the mosquito control program can be continued effectively the situation will improve somewhat.
Public health professor Benazir Ahmed told Sarabangla about the need for a proper action plan, ‘Dengue does not come out of the country where it enters. But it can be controlled. Nothing effective has been done to control it in our country for more than two centuries. Still, if we want to control dengue, proper action plans must be adopted. The action plan has to be implemented with necessary allocation.
Pointing out the importance of everyone’s active participation, the line director of the infectious disease control branch of the Department of Health, Professor Dr. Nazmul Islam said, once dengue enters a community, it cannot be completely eradicated. In the future there will be more urbanization, more development. Care must be taken to destroy mosquito breeding grounds everywhere. Active participation of people is essential in this case.
Sarabangla/SB/TR
