Over 3,000 dengue patients detected in July, officials warn of increase in cases

Health officials yesterday warned of an increase in dengue cases, with 16,497 patients detected since the beginning of the year.

According to the Ministry, 2,997 dengue cases were detected in June and 3,029 detections were made in July. This is an increase from the previous year, with 2,252 patients detected in June 2020 and 2,288 patients detected in July 2020. A total of 31,162 dengue patients were detected that year.

However, dengue detections during June and July in 2020 and 2021 are significantly less than in 2019, when 6,019 patients were detected in June and 8,897 patients were detected in July. In total, 105,049 dengue cases were detected in 2019.

Despite this, health officials warn that a dengue epidemic amidst the COVID-19 pandemic can have a significant impact on the country’s health system.

According to the Health Ministry, 70% of the dengue cases detected this year were from Western Province, Kurunegala, Kandy, Matara, Ratnapura, Kegalle, Galle and Hambantota Districts are also seeing an increase in patients. The National Dengue Control Unit foresees an increase in dengue cases, especially due to the monsoon rains.

The Health Ministry states that studies carried out by the National Dengue Control Unit, Medical Research Institute and the Sri Jayewardenepura University found that four dengue serotypes were found in the island, with serotype two and serotype three being the most common.