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In 2023, India ranked among the top 20 countries with the highest reported cases and fatalities due to dengue fever, marking a significant increase compared to the past five years. A recent report by Save the Children disclosed staggering statistics: over 5 million cases were recorded across the 20 most affected nations between January and November 2023, indicating a 30% rise from 2022 and an 18% surge compared to 2019.
Tragically, at least 5,500 individuals succumbed to dengue in these 20 countries, including India, reflecting a 32% increase from 2022 and an 11% rise from 2019. The report highlighted that the actual numbers might be substantially higher due to underreported cases. Bangladesh, witnessing its worst-ever outbreak, faced a significant escalation with over 300,000 cases in 2023, a stark contrast from the 62,000 cases in 2022, resulting in 1,598 fatalities, including over 160 children under the age of 10—more than five times the deaths reported in 2022.
Save the Children’s Senior Health and Nutrition Advisor for Asia, Yasir Arafat, emphasized the dire impact on children’s lives, not just as victims of dengue but also due to disruptions in education, heightened economic and emotional strain on families, and the loss of caregivers to the disease. Arafat stressed the necessity for localized strategies involving communities, urging government-wide efforts beyond health departments to control mosquitoes, diagnose, and treat the disease. Additionally, anticipating extreme weather and climate shocks requires adequate funding for risk management rather than solely crisis response.
Dengue fever, transmitted through mosquito bites, manifests flu-like symptoms and, in severe cases, progresses to dengue hemorrhagic fever or shock syndrome, potentially leading to fatalities. The report attributed the surge in dengue cases in 2023 to the El Nino event exacerbated by the ongoing climate crisis. The World Health Organization’s data underscored a substantial eight-fold increase in dengue cases from around 500,000 in 2000 to over 4.2 million in 2022.
