Efforts to prevent dengue fever suppressed by coronavirus pandemic

Southeast Asian countries such as Singapore and Indonesia are addressing the simultaneous outbreak of dengue fever and coronavirus this year. According to the Pan American Health Organization, at least 1.1 million dengue cases have been reported in Brazil, with more than 1.6 million COVID-19 infections, and nearly 400 deaths.

Dengue cases can increase as soon as seasonal rainfall begins in Latin American countries such as Cuba, Chile, Costa Rica, and South Asian countries in India and Pakistan.

Dengue is usually not fatal, but in severe cases it may require hospitalization. Preventive efforts aimed at destroying mosquito breeding grounds, such as removing debris and old tires containing water, are the best ways to control the spread of this disease. However, blockades and other restrictions during the coronavirus era have reduced or completely stopped these efforts in many countries.

Dr. Lizwan Kundi, leader of the Young Doctors Association, said plans to sanitize dengue-struck tire shops and markets in 2019 in northwest Pakistan have been postponed because of the money spent on the coronavirus.

Healthcare workers destroying mosquito breeding grounds in the Indian capital New Delhi are also testing for viruses.

Having to identify thousands of viral cases means dengue surveillance is suffering in many Latin American countries, blaming the American regional offices of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. Dr. Maria Franca Catalarico, who added that, added.

Experts say that interfering with such preventive actions is unlucky to the global battle against dengue.

According to the World Health Organization, 2019 was the worst year of documented dengue cases, affecting all regions and the first in some countries.

The Dengue fever-spreading mosquito, Aedes aegypti, is the most prevalent in the city, and experts warn that its range will continue to expand due to increasing urbanization and rising temperatures due to climate change.

According to experts, a reduction in travel means that mosquitoes have fewer chances to bite dengue fever to become their own carriers, but the coronavirus pandemic has introduced other variables.

Staying at home (especially one way to delay the outbreak of COVID-19 in cities) poses a significant risk to dengue transmission, according to the National Environment Agency (NEA) in Singapore. This is because as the Aedes aegypti bites during the day and more people stay in homes with high numbers of mosquitoes, the more likely they are to be bitten by a mosquito.

The impact is already visible. Singapore recorded a five-fold increase in mosquito larvae found in common corridors of residential and residential areas during the two-month coronavirus blockade compared to the past two months. By July 6, the total number of dengue cases in Singapore had exceeded 15,500. According to the NEA, the number of cases this year is expected to exceed the 22,170 cases reported in 2013, the largest dengue outbreak in Singapore history at the time.

Oliver Brady, an associate professor at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said the risks are high because of the overlapping outbreaks in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Working with Latin American communities to stop mosquito breeding has been the most successful anti-dengue strategy in recent years, according to Tararico. However, “it’s a big concern for us,” he said, as there are strict restrictions on movement, so he’s not sure if these steps are still in place.

He also states that due to lack of protective equipment, the number of first responders who can check people with fever and cough should be limited.

“My concern is (there are many) cases of dengue, but the system has limited ability to perform notification (and) testing,” she said.

Dengue patients need acute care, which can lead to a “double whammy” that overwhelms the healthcare system, said Scott O’Neill, founder and director of the Global Mosquito Program.

“The healthcare system is already collapsing… I don’t know how existing healthcare systems (in India) can handle this burden,” said public health expert Dr. SP Karantry. ..

According to Brady, global research on dengue will also be affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

At the WMP Tahija Foundation Research Laboratory in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, where he has been studying dengue fever for years, “it has become difficult to get a social distance to patients,” O’Neill said. .. This facility is currently used as the COVID-19 test site.

Similarly, the National Institute of Malaria in New Delhi suspended all field surveys after being converted into a center to validate the COVID-19 test kit, said RC Dhiman, who studies mosquitoes and climate change. Said the doctor.

Afsana Alamgir Khan, who oversees the country’s dengue program, said that in Bangladesh, where the dengue season has just begun, the launch of a mobile app to help report patients has been delayed by a pandemic.

Experts say that such disruption by coronavirus only increases the risk of dengue infection.

Gosal was reported by New Delhi. Associated Press authors Edna Tarrigan of Jakarta, Indonesia, Kathy Gannon of Islamabad, and Jura Alam in Dhaka, Bangladesh, contributed to the report.

The Associated Press Health Sciences Department is supported by the Science Education Department of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. AP is solely responsible for all content.

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