Maldives hit by dengue fever in global epidemic
17 Jul 2010, 12:10 PM
A. R. Abdulla and Aishath Shazra
Dengue fever is on the rise across the Maldives, especially in Male’, and children are the main victims, according to the Maldivian Centre for Community Health and Disease Control (CHDC).
Official records show 473 cases have been reported for 2010 up to the first week of July, and children aged between one and nine years are the most effected by the virus. “There have been no fatalities reported so far,” says the CHDC.
“In January, we had 24 cases of dengue, and in April it climbed to 28,” says Zeenath Ali Habeeb, media co-ordinator for Indhira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH). Figures from IGMH show that cases almost doubled in May to 50, and by June they reached 57.
Each year with the onset of the monsoon, there is an increase in the number of people with dengue, according to Dr Solah, senior medical officer at CHDC. Rain water in containers of any kind can become mosquito breeding grounds, and this is the main reason for the increased incidence of dengue.
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