Dengue Fever Claims Lives Again, Number Likely to Rise in Upcoming Months

The registered cases in Delhi due to dengue fever has risen to a double of what it was around the same time, last year. By July 2015, 40 cases were registered whereas on July 23, 2016, 93 cases were registered. As per Dr. K K Aggarwal, Secretary General of the Indian Medical Association says, back-to-back outbreaks are rare, but if the trend continues the same way, Delhi might incur another one.
“Earlier, it was believed that outbreaks follow a cyclical trend with higher incidences being reported every three to four years. But large-scale construction, population growth, poor waste management and presence of multiple strains of the virus, it seems, is causing the disease to grow rapidly,” he told TOI. The National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme (NVBDCP) had warned about conditions being ripe for breeding of mosquitoes in May itself, a senior scientist said. Since there is no vaccine available for dengue fever, prevention remains the only strategy for dengue, doctors said.
Dr. Ekta Gupta, Virologist at Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences, said September-October is considered peak season for dengue spread. “It is likely that the dengue count will go up in the coming days. We must be prepared not just to take preventive measures but also to provide treatment to all,” she said.
Last year, due to a crisis situation, the state government decided to start fever clinics and ordered prioritizing treatment of dengue patients in hospitals as most hospitals were running out of beds, and patients were being denied treatment.

Source- http://epaperbeta.timesofindia.com/Article.aspx?eid=31808&articlexml=2nd-straight-outbreak-feared-as-dengue-cases-soar-26072016001027