The Nepal Weekly 
July 2, 2024
Dengue, first seen in Nepal in 2004, was a seasonal problem with infection spreading mainly from May to October. However, in recent years, dengue has taken the form of an evergreen infection. According to the officials of Epidemiology and Disease Control Division, dengue infection has been observed every twelve months since 2019.
In the years 2022 and 2023 respectively, January 11 and 133, February 3 and 130, March 15 and 195, April 18 and 158, May 25 and 163 and June 93 and 1,026 new cases have been reported. Similarly, 720 and 6,459 in July, 3,708 and 14,534 in August, 27,529 and 13,912 in September, 17,889 and 12,699 in October, 4,290 and 2,805 in November and 483 and 576 in December cases were seen. Even in 2024, new cases of dengue infection have been seen within 6 months. 243 cases were seen in January, 173 in February, 200 in March, 215 in April, 250 in May and 187 in June. According to official figures, 88 people died in 2022 and 20 in 2023.
Dengue is transmitted by Aedes aegypti or Aedes albopictus mosquitoes. Mosquitoes of this species, which spread by blooming in clean water during the monsoon season, are not only active for twelve months, but also reach the cold Himalayan region. According to his analysis, mosquitoes are seen as the main challenge to public health because they can live in any kind of environment and can harm the human body. Doctors say that as the number of mosquitoes increases, they adapt to the natural environment. The number of mosquitoes is increasing every year. They have adapted the environment. Doctors links climate change as the main cause of the increasing number of mosquitoes, meaning that dengue infections can be seen year-round and everywhere.
Along with Nepal, dengue outbreaks are occurring every year in Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan. In 2023, 1 thousand 643 people died when the infection spread to more than 3 lakhs 16 thousand people in Bangladesh. Even in India, dengue is becoming an epidemic every year due to the high rate of infection. According to data from India’s National Center for Disease Control, there were more than 94 thousand infections and 91 deaths last year. Data from Pakistan’s National Institute of Health also shows that dengue infections are increasing in recent years. In 2022, the infection was confirmed in 41 thousand 746 people. Even in Sri Lanka, the number of infected people exceeded 65 thousand last year. According to the data of Sri Lanka’s Dengue Infection Control Center, more than 53 thousand people were infected with dengue even in 2022.
According to the World Health Organization, in recent years, dengue infection has become an epidemic in South Asia, other South East Asian countries, America and Europe. The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that dengue, which is increasing it may appear as the next major deadly infection in the coming years. According to WHO data, 3.5 billion people in the world are currently at high risk of dengue epidemic.
