Dengue deaths nearing 500

Staff Reporter :
The country recorded more eight fatalities from dengue in 24 hours till Tuesday morning, raising the death toll from the mosquito-borne disease to 493 this year.

During the period, 2,168 more patients were hospitalised with the viral fever, data released by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) said it.

Among the new patients, 842 were admitted to hospitals in Dhaka and the rest 1326 outside the capital–indicating a worsening situation across the country, DGHS said.

A total of 7,829 dengue patients, including 3,570 in Dhaka, are now receiving treatment at hospitals across the country.

So far, the DGHS has recorded 96,037 recoveries this year.

As per the DGHS data, three weeks in August has already been the deadliest month of the outbreak this year with 52,527 cases and 242 fatalities.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) on Friday called for efforts to control the mosquito vector population and minimize individual exposure such as using mosquito repellents and wearing long-sleeved clothes.

The UN health agency assessed the dengue risk at the national level as “High”, primarily due to the escalating case numbers, high case fatality rate, and the extensive geographical distribution of cases.