Dengue is transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquito. (photo: EBC)
The World Health Organization (WHO) has issued a warning of the skyrocketing incidence of dengue fever in the Americas. And the first half of this year ended with 2.9 million injuries in the region, between confirmed cases and suspected cases.
That number is higher than the total recorded for the entirety of last year: 2.8 million. The countries with the highest rate are in South America. The WHO highlighted Bolivia, Peru and Brazil – which have already recorded more than 2.3 million cases this year, nearly 80% of the total.
Dengue fever epidemics follow a cycle, appearing with greater force every three or five years. This is one of the reasons given by the World Health Organization to explain the high number of cases of the disease.
In Brazil, the year 2023 showed an increase of more than 70% in the number of cases compared to the average of the past five years. It should be noted that dengue fever can develop into serious conditions such as the so-called dengue hemorrhagic fever. More than 800 people have died of dengue fever in Brazil this year.
According to the Pan American Health Organization, in addition to the natural course of disease, failures in coping policies, climate change and phenomena such as El Niño – which make the climate warmer – overlap with the numbers.
The Ministry of Health acknowledges that the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the national fight against Aedes aegypti, the vector of the disease.
′′ The epidemic has affected a lot. We have action by our agents to combat endemic disease for which, during this period, their actions have been very weak. Ethel Maciel, Minister of Health and Environmental Control at the Ministry of Health, explained the interruption in the purchase of some products, and pesticides, that are used to control disease vectors.
Vaccines
Dengue vaccines do exist, but they are not yet available in the SUS (Unified Health System). There are two approved variants of Anvisa (the national health surveillance agency): one from French laboratory Sanofi Pasteur, which can only be used by those who have already had the disease, and another for a wider audience, from Japanese drugmaker Takeda, approved this year. Both have age restrictions.
At the moment, they are only found in private clinics. The Ministry of Health reports that the Japanese vaccine is being evaluated for SUS entry.
