With the hospitalisation of 2,134 more dengue patients in 24 hours till morning, the number of dengue cases in Bangladesh neared 1,00,000 on Sunday.
According to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), this year's total dengue case count was 99,994 in the morning.
Meanwhile, the death toll reached 476, the highest in a year since dengue was detected in 2000, with 10 more patients passing away in 24 hours until Sunday morning.
Some 281 patients died last year, according to DGHS.
Of the new patients, 785 were admitted to hospitals in Dhaka and the rest 1,349 outside the capital, indicating a worsening situation across the country, DGHS said.
A total of 7,582 dengue patients, including 3,532 in the capital, are now receiving treatment at hospitals across the country. So far, the DGHS has recorded 91,936 recoveries this year.
According to DGHS, among the total dengue-positive cases, 37,640 are female and 62,354 are male while 272 deaths from dengue are female and 204 male.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has urged swift action as dengue cases are surging in Bangladesh, saying, “The higher incidence of dengue is taking place in the context of an unusual episodic amount of rainfall, combined with high temperatures and high humidity, which have resulted in an increased mosquito population throughout Bangladesh.”
In 2019, the country saw 1,01,354 cases, the highest dengue-positive patients in a single year since the mosquito-borne disease was identified in the country for the first time.
According to the experts, August and September are normally considered as peak months for dengue disease but the peak period has extended till November last year.
They predicted that the ongoing dengue outbreak may prolong till November as a large number of Aedes mosquitoes are grown this year while met office forecasts that rainy weather is likely to extend during the months of October and November.
The health experts including entomologists feared dengue cases and deaths will exceed all previous records this year as the number of cases and fatalities continue to rise, signalling an alarming trend.
They also warned the dengue situation may deteriorate this month and in the upcoming month, asking authorities concerned to launch a massive campaign against all types of mosquitoes.
