Dengue on the rise this year

A drastic increase in dengue fever cases is seen this year with people failing to keep their surroundings clean and the intermittent rain causing an increase in breeding places of dengue mosquitoes. Figures from the Health Ministry Epidemiology Unit revealed that there were 3220 dengue cases from January to May with 778 cases being reported from Colombo district.

Gampaha, Kalutara, Puttalam, Kurunegala, Trincomalee, Ratnapura and Kegalle were other districts which had the next highest number of reported cases.“We see a 30 percent increase of dengue patients compared to last year and unfortunately it’s increasing.” an official of the Epidemiology Unit said.

“We have observed that at least 500 cases per month are reported throughout the year and that’s a bad trend. Keeping the immediate environment clean should take place on a weekly basis to prevent the spread of diseases,” she said. In Colombo, Havelock Town, Kirulapone, Milagiriya and Bambalapitiya are the areas most affected by the dengue menace, Colombo Municipal Council Chief Medical Officer Dr. Pradeep Kariyawasam said.

He said there is a 95 per cent increase in dengue patients in Colombo compared to last year.“Usually during this season there is a downward trend but this time in addition to the viral fever there is a rise in dengue at an alarming rate. We fear that the situation would worsen with the monsoonal rains. The advice we could give to the public is that they should inspect their gardens and see whether there are mosquito breeding sites. Large leaves which carry a teaspoonful of water may help to breed mosquitoes,” he said.

Dr. Kariyawasam said that cleaning blocked gutters in houses as well as in office buildings is very vital. Ratnapura is one district which recorded the highest number of viral fever and chikungunya cases. There is a drastic drop in attendance of school children as well as workers, according to health officials.

It is reported that there were more than 30,000 fever cases reported from April to mid-May with the majority being suspected of having chikungunya. Sabaragamuwa Provincial Health Director Dr. Kapila Kannangara said that the situation is under control now.

“Patients take paracetamol but they do not have enough bed rest and do not take enough fluids. Working reduces the immunity system causing the fever to worsen. The best advice would be to take at least 4-5 days of bed rest and take a lot of fluids during those days,” he said.

He added that in Ratnapura district open pits left after illegal gem mining are major breeding sites for mosquitoes.