WNAM REPORT: Singapore’s dengue case numbers in 2024 have crossed the 10,000 mark, surpassing the figure logged for the whole 2023, according to the National Environment Agency (NEA).
There were 267 dengue cases between July 14 and 22, taking the total number of local infections to 10,141 so far this year. The tally in 2023 stood at 9,949, which was far lower than the 32,173 cases recorded in 2022.
In March, the NEA warned of a surge in dengue infections after numbers shot up ahead of the traditional peak season from May to October. It said at the time that the number could go up in the coming months, given the high Aedes aegypti mosquito population here and the low population immunity to dengue.
As of July 22, Singapore has recorded 70 active dengue clusters. They include 10 red-alert clusters, which are high-risk areas with 10 or more cases.
The nation suffered its largest dengue outbreak in 2020, when there were 35,315 cases and 32 deaths. The spike then has been attributed to several factors, including warmer and humid conditions favouring the survival of mosquitoes, as well as people being bitten by dengue-carrying mosquitoes when they worked from home.
Meanwhile, Cambodia reported 7,058 dengue fever cases in the first half of 2024, a year-on-year increase of about 10%.
Leang Rithea, National Dengue Control Program manager and deputy director of the National Center for Parasitology and Malaria Control, said in response to the dengue situation, the country has prepared more than 160 tonnes of Abate and many liters of mosquito repellent to prevent a large-scale outbreak.
Parents should take their sick children to health centers or state hospitals within 48 hours if they suspect that their kids are infected with a dengue virus, he said.
Worldwide, the presence of dengue has markedly increased over the past two decades, according to the World Health Organisation’s assessment in 2023.
Since the start of 2023, the spread of dengue has resulted in nearly a historic high of more than 5 million cases and more than 5,000 dengue-related deaths reported in more than 80 countries or territories.
