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Guyana recorded over 10 000 dengue cases in 2024

Jan 01, 2025 News

Kaieteur News- Guyana recorded just over 10,000 dengue cases in 2024, Health Minister Dr. Frank Anthony revealed during an end of year press conference on Wednesday.

The ministry plans to intensify fogging efforts to aid in decreasing the cases.  Dr. Anthony revealed that Regions One, Two, Four, Six, Nine and 10 have been the most affected; prompting heightened monitoring in these areas. To combat the spread of the disease, the Ministry of Health has deployed vector control teams across the country, focusing on fogging breeding sites during peak mosquito activity times.

Dr. Anthony emphasised the importance of community involvement in preventing dengue. “We have looking acquire over 200 more fogging machine and train community teams to add  to the fogging activities that we have ongoing,” he noted.

Measures such as eliminating stagnant water, using repellents, and taking precautions to avoid mosquito bites are crucial in controlling the spread of the disease. Additionally, the distribution of larvicide, known as abate, aims to eliminate mosquito breeding sites. “…We have also been distributing that to various communities’ various regions and encouraging people to put that into stagnant water, so if that is a breeding site then we can kill the mosquitoes,” he said.

In a bid to further protect vulnerable populations, the ministry has also distributed treated bed nets in places like region nine. The ministry continues to urge individuals experiencing symptoms of dengue to seek medical attention promptly, especially during the critical phase. Dr. Anthony has said that the first phase of dengue is the febrile phase, which typically lasts from 1 to 3 days, during which individuals experience fever. Following this phase, patients usually begin to recover. However, in more severe cases, individuals may progress to a critical phase lasting from 24 to 48 hours. During this critical phase, plasma leakage can occur, leading to dehydration or bleeding, which may result in shock.

Back in December the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) had reported on three transmissible diseases affecting the Region of the Americas: dengue, Oropouche, and avian influenza (H5N1) and the agency’s Director Dr. Jarbas Barbosa expressed concern over the increase in cases in 2024 but emphasised effective strategies to control the outbreaks and mitigate their impact.

According to a press release from PAHO, last year, the region had faced the largest dengue epidemic since records began in 1980. Countries had reported more than 12.6 million cases, nearly three times more than in 2023, including 21,000 severe cases and over 7700 deaths.

Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, and Mexico account for 90% of cases and 88% of deaths, with Brazil having the largest share. “Dengue is posing a higher-than-normal risk to children. In countries like Guatemala, 70% of dengue-related deaths have occurred in children,” Dr. Barbosa said during a press conference, highlighting that children under 15 represent over a third of severe cases in countries like Costa Rica, Mexico, and Paraguay.

The PAHO Director explained that the situation is linked to climate events favouring mosquito proliferation, as well as to unplanned urbanization, accumulated water around the home, and poor waste management, which create breeding grounds for the vector. Despite the challenges, he insisted that “we are not powerless against dengue,” and mentioned the implementation of PAHO’s Integrated Management Strategy for the Prevention and Control of Arboviral Diseases as a key effort to “keep severe and fatal cases relatively low through better patient management.”

Dengue vaccines have been introduced in countries like Brazil, Argentina, and Peru, and Honduras plans to do so in 2025. However, Dr. Barbosa noted that “the current vaccine will not stop the spread of the virus in the short or medium term and does not provide immediate relief during an outbreak.”

(Guyana recorded over 10 000 dengue cases in 2024)

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