A SIGNIFICANT number of hospital admission for dengue fever,聽a mosquito-borne viral infection, in three months warrants that the government should step up its effort to prevent an outbreak. The death toll from the disease has increased to 14 and the number of cases 1,954 since January. In 2024, dengue left 22 people dead and 1,747 others were admitted to in the corresponding period. While the mortality rate is not alarming, the number of hospital admission for dengue is high for the dry season. Entomologists and virologists alike urge the government to take prompt action because the density of Aedes, the vector, in the environment is increasing while the dengue virus is active. The government effort, however, remains business-as-usual and focused on routine spraying of larvicides, which proved ineffective in the previous seasons. The pre-monsoon survey of the presence of Aedes mosquitoes conducted to identify potential hotspots for the vector breeding and to design a targeted drive is, meanwhile, reportedly delayed because of a fund crunch. The government in the past, when the death toll reached 1,705 in 2023, remained indifferent to expert opinions and warnings. The government should learn from the past mistakes and act immediately.
Experts have recently termed government programmes unscientific and flawed in that they have failed to act considering the changing reproductive behaviour of the vector. When it is considered that high day temperatures with low humidity are unfavourable for the spread of the Aedes mosquito, a high number of dengue cases are reported during the dry season. A higher number of hospital admission this year substantiates the claim. The cases indicate a possible genetic mutation, an under-researched reproductive behaviour of the vector, which needs to be understood for an effective prevention strategy. In 2024, people reported their experience of being infected with the dengue virus more than once. The immunity to fight the virus is compromised when a person is infected more than once in a short time and it increases the possibility of the fatality rate. Public hospitals, however, did not have any mechanism to identify patients with previous infection records. Besides, chemicals and hand-held foggers in use to eliminate larvae in Bangladesh, as the Vector Management Group says, are not as effective as vehicle-mounted foggers. No significant progress has been made in cleaning the canals, which is crucial for a successful dengue prevention campaign, in the capital.
The government should, therefore, immediately review weaknesses of the mosquito control programmes and introduce a mechanism to detect the source of the vector mosquito, redouble its efforts for mosquito control and equip hospitals with adequate funds and medicines before the monsoon season.
