Three reasons behind huge dengue deaths this year
Reza Mahmud :
Huge numbers of patients died from dengue fever in Bangladesh this year creating panic among the people. The dengue cases are also on rise.
Several reasons including changing behaviours and nature of the vector borne disease caused the number of deaths this year, experts say.
In the last 24 hours, a total of 11 more deaths were reported from dengue, raising the fatalities from the mosquito-borne disease in the country to 741.
A total of 151,272 dengue patients have so far been hospitalised in the country in the ongoing year. And 2,944 patients were reportedly hospitalised in the last 24 hours ending Monday morning.
Public health experts have identified three reasons behind excessive fatalities from dengue this year.
They said, firstly, the patients who have infected in dengue for the second or third time, the virus enter their bodies as antigen. In this situation, the plasmas get leaked and the fluids of their bloods get out gradually.
As a result, shock syndrome found in those patients which lead them to kidney, leaver and heart dysfunctional condition.
Such a serious condition frequently caused death to those patients.
Secondly, they said, DENV-2 variant is a serious variation of the dengue. This variant is found about 65 percent of patients body in this season which caused the high fatalities from dengue.
The DENV-2 variant of dengue caused high-grade fever, vomiting, joint pains, and altered sensorium and may even lead to lethal complications resulting in dengue hemorrhagic fever and dengue shock syndrome.
Thirdly, the experts said, most of the people are doing late to take the patients to hospitals as they think it may be the seasonal fever or viral fever.
As a result, the delaying pushed many patients’ at the deteriorating stage and caused deaths.
Besides, the experts said, the mortality rates among the female patients are more than the male because many families used to make delay of bringing the women in hospitals as a social lagging behind manners.
According to the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) case fatality rate (CFR) is 0.5pc this year in the country while the CFR was 0.44 pc in 2022.
Earlier, the Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR) reported that most of the people are getting affected with the DENV-2 variants this season which is a serious variety and caused the number of fatalities from the mosquito borne disease.
When contacted, Professor Dr. Be-Nazir Ahmed, former Director of Communicable Disease Control at the DGHS told The New Nation that, “Mainly three reasons are behind increasing rate of deaths from dengue this year.
They are: 1) second or third time infection with the vector borne disease; 2) high numbers of affected with DENV-2 variant which is a serious variety and 3) delaying of taking patients to hospitals.”
He said many of the people become happy with getting dengue test report negative. But such reports might be wrong in several cases.
The experts asked all to bring patients to hospitals soon after catching fever.
Contacted, Public health expert Dr. Lenin Chowdhury told The New Nation that, “The dengue has changed its nature which caused huge deaths this year.”
The changing behaviour and nature including little fever and vomiting instead of high temperature are making patients puzzled that if it dengue or not.
Such cases make delaying hospitalisation also caused high rate of deaths, he added.
The experts suggested early hospitalisation in case of any type of fever.