Health Desk: The dengue outbreak continues to escalate, with three more deaths reported nationwide in the last 24 hours.
This brings the total number of dengue-related fatalities in 2023 to 166.
In the same period, a record 1,144 individuals were hospitalized due to the disease, raising the total number of dengue cases this year to 32,082.
The Health Emergency Operation Center and Control Room of the Directorate General of Health Services provided these updates in their regular report on Tuesday evening (October 1).
According to the report, within the last 24 hours, 1,144 people were admitted to hospitals due to dengue fever.
Among those affected, 441 were from the two city corporations in Dhaka.
Other regions reported the following hospitalizations: 252 in Dhaka Division, 99 in Barishal, 144 in Chattogram, 81 in Khulna, 35 in Mymensingh, and 33 in Rajshahi.
From January 1 to October 1 this year, out of the 32,082 hospitalized dengue patients, 63% were male and 37% female.
Among the 166 deaths, 51.2% were female and 48.8% male.
Dengue typically peaks during the monsoon season, and the situation has become severe since June 2023.
Last year, the country recorded 321,179 hospitalizations due to dengue, with 110,008 cases in Dhaka and 211,171 outside the capital.
Overall, 318,749 individuals recovered and returned home after treatment last year.
The previous year also saw the highest annual death toll from dengue in the country’s history, with 1,705 fatalities.
In 2019, Bangladesh faced a major dengue outbreak, resulting in 101,354 cases and nearly 300 deaths among healthcare workers and patients.
While dengue infections were low during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the following year saw 28,429 cases and 105 deaths. In 2022, a total of 62,382 people were hospitalized due to dengue, resulting in 281 deaths.