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Rising death toll from dengue and H1N1
View(s):The prevailing unusual weather conditions are contributing towards rising deaths due to dengue and H1N1 influenza, health officials warned yesterday. With the death toll due to dengue rising to 53 in three months and the number of cases increasing to 27,898 the Dengue Control Unit has issued health warnings to 11 districts.
They are Colombo, Gampaha, Kalutara, Galle, Matara, Hambantota, Batticaloa, Trincomalee, Jaffna, Ratnapura and Kegalle. Last month, 9,004 dengue cases were reported to hospitals in contrast to 2,696 cases in March last year. Alongside dengue, H1N1 influenza has also seen an increase island wide.
The influenza virus that was said to have subsided has, however, spread to parts of the Central Province. Central Province Health Services Director Dr. Shanthi Samarasinghe told the Sunday Times that in the Province 115 patients were confirmed positive for the H1N1 virus while 17 deaths had bee reported in the Kandy and Matale districts districts in the first three months of the year.
Dr. Samarasinghe said the most vulnerable were the people suffering from chronic illnesses. “The virus is a communicable disease. Therefore, it could spread fast. The people have to take precautions,” she said. She added that awareness programmes were being carried out by health officials and they were able to control the outbreak to some extent.
The Health Ministry’s Consultant Epidemiologist Dr. Samitha Ginige said that while the unusual weather pattern contributed to dengue, another factor was the improper waste disposal. Â He said the transmission of virus can take several patterns in different regions and at the moment the South East Asian Region is experiencing an extended outbreak.
Last year, 90 dengue related deaths were reported in the country with 55,150 cases.