DHAKA: The worst dengue fever outbreak in the history of Bangladesh has claimed 1,606 lives so far, according to official figures released on Monday.
Dengue normally affects citizens during the monsoon season, which normally runs from July to September.
According to the Directorate General of Health Services, more than 309,000 people have been infected with the virus this year so far.
The virus is transmitted by Aedes mosquitoes that breed in freshwater pools and drains.
The dengue fever death toll is the highest in the country and almost six times the 281 deaths recorded last year.
Health experts concerned at lengthy outbreak season
Health experts have voiced concern at the time span of this year’s outbreak, as the number of dengue infections usually come down with the end of monsoon rains. However, the country has recorded nearly 38,000 cases in November alone.
Sharfuddin Ahmed, vice chancellor at the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University in Dhaka told media that despite the decreasing number of patients now, the institute did not receive any dengue patients in this period in previous years.
He said this year the dengue outbreak was recorded across Bangladesh, which didn’t occur in previous years.
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According to the statistics more than 65 percent of the cases reported this year were from outside Dhaka.
Muzaherul Huq, a public health expert and former regional adviser for the World Health Organization, believed the climate change could be a main reason for the extended dengue season.
He was of the view that the government of Bangladesh should strengthen the dengue control mechanism and conduct further research to comply with the disease pattern changes.
