Dengue Cases in Americas Up Nearly 50 Percent, PAHO Reports

WASHINGTON -  The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) said that this year there have been more than 5.2 million confirmed cases of the mosquito-borne viral disease across the Americas, a 48 percent rise from the 3.5 million cases reported late last month.

More than 1,800 people have been killed by dengue, up from around 1,000 deaths reported last month in the year through March.

"We have an emergency situation," said PAHO director Jarbas Barbosa, who added that Argentina and Brazil, the countries so far hit the hardest in the current outbreak, "still have a very strong transmission."

Barbosa added, "In recent weeks, there seems to be a stabilization or even a reduction" in the countries' cases. However, he warned that supplies of an existing dengue vaccine are "very limited," and even widespread vaccination would not have an immediate effect on the ongoing outbreak.

The rise of dengue can be attributed to several factors, PAHO says, including rising temperatures, extreme weather events, rapid population growth, and inadequate water and sanitation services, which can create mosquito breeding sites.

Source: https://www.paho.org/