Over 25,000 dengue infections and nine deaths have been reported in the past five months, with 25,417 cases recorded between 1 January and 5 June, according to the National Dengue Control Unit (NDCU).
Following recent site inspections, the NDCU has disclosed that the majority of mosquito-breeding grounds had been discovered at schools and tuition centres.
Nevertheless, unfavourable weather conditions have resulted in the postponement of planned anti-dengue initiatives.
“We planned an eradication programme to be rolled out in May, but the turning of weather hampered the efforts. However, we advise the public to carry out cleanups in their immediate environs, whether within the household, office premises, or any publicly-accessed spaces in neighbourhoods. It is better to look out for potential breeding sites and destroy them,” NDCU Director Dr. Sudath Samaraweera told The Sunday Morning.
Dr. Samaraweera added that the NDCU had inspected 93,874 premises and identified 28,310 mosquito-breeding sites, mosquito larvae being found in 4,890 premises, nearly 20% of schools, and 9% of tuition centres.
Dengue vectors are container breeders; they breed in a wide variety of artificial and natural wet containers/receptacles, preferably with dark-coloured surfaces and holding clear (unpolluted) water. Therefore, the NDCU recommends that precautions be taken to prevent mosquito breeding, such as removing standing water and using insect repellents.
The most common breeding sites for mosquitoes are discarded receptacles; water storage containers and tanks; automobile tyres and machinery parts; building structures (roof gutters, concrete slabs, etc.); household and institutional appliances (refrigerator trays, flower vases, ornamental ponds, non-functional cisterns, and squatting pans of washrooms); other artificial breeding sites (abandoned boats, cemeteries, etc); and natural breeding sites (leaf axils, tree holes, etc.).
In January and February, the dengue caseload was at its highest at 10,417 (with four deaths) and 6,007, respectively. Records show a total of 3,615 cases in March, 2,234 in April, and 2,208 in May (until 27 May).
In 2023, almost 90,000 dengue cases were reported and January this year had over 10,000 cases, but the number kept fluctuating.
Dengue has a seasonal transmission in Sri Lanka, with two peaks occurring with the monsoon rains in June-July and October-December respectively. The majority of cases occur during June-July, the summer monsoon.
The period from January to February has witnessed a peak in cases in recent years, making it compulsory for dengue eradication programmes to be carried out routinely.
Source: the morning
