2024-01-30 16:53:02
Repellents are used to prevent mosquito bites that transmit dengue. But the high price in Argentina is a barrier to access (Illustrative Image Infobae)
Dengue is following a different trend in Argentina. Throughout 2023 there were reports of cases even in winter, and during January of this year more than 11,800 confirmed cases were already recorded according to the National Ministry of Health.
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However, there are obstacles to adhering to prevention: there are people who want to prevent infection but do not use repellents due to their high costs, as four medical specialists in the country informed Infobae.
Dengue is a viral disease transmitted by the bite of the Aedes aegypti mosquito. When the mosquito feeds on the blood of a person sick with dengue and then bites other people, it transmits this disease. Contagion occurs mainly through the bite of infected mosquitoes, never from one person to another, nor through objects or breast milk.
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To prevent bites, the use of repellents is one of the recommendations of the Health portfolio, along with long-sleeved and light-colored clothing. Also to prevent dengue, it is advisable to eliminate possible spaces – such as disused objects – that can be breeding grounds for larvae and mosquitoes.
During 2023, cases of dengue were recorded in winter in Argentina. Now there were cases earlier than expected in 2024/ Freepik.
There is already indigenous circulation of the virus in 11 of the 24 jurisdictions that make up Argentina. Cases rose earlier than expected for this time of year. Usually, they began to increase in February.
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“There is an increase in cases and without a doubt with the increase in prices, the repellent is not accessible to everyone. Using repellent is a preventive measure against mosquito bites,” said Dr. Susana Lloveras, former president of the Latin American Society of Travel Medicine and infectious disease doctor at the Muñiz Hospital in the City of Buenos Aires, in dialogue with Infobae. “It is also important to avoid mosquito breeding sites at home,” Lloveras added.
“The situation is worrying because there is a higher incidence of dengue cases, and people cannot buy repellents. In some places, the repellent is already costing between 6 and 7 thousand pesos, and on top of that it lasts less and less. If the repellent is not purchased and used, there are people who can die from severe dengue,” pediatrician Omar Recchi, former director of the San José Municipal Hospital, located in the Exaltación de la district, told Infobae. Cross.
According to the latest epidemiological bulletin of the Ministry of Health of the Nation, from the last week of October to January 20, 27,430 cases of dengue were registered. It means that there is a cumulative incidence of 59 cases of dengue per 100,000 inhabitants. Within that total of 27,430, there were 26,010 autochthonous cases (it means that the person acquired the infection near their place of residence).
Health agents in provinces such as Misiones visit homes and help detect places with accumulation of water, which serve as breeding grounds for mosquitoes / Ministry of Public Health of Misiones
During the same period, 20 cases of patients dying from dengue were recorded. They were people who were in the Northeast region, which is the one that has recorded the most cases.
Last Friday, in the province of Misiones – which reported 2,325 cases from October to January 20 – a 3-month-old baby died from dengue. Another 6 deaths had been recorded in January.
In dialogue with Infobae, the director of epidemiology of the Ministry of Public Health of Misiones, Eduardo Ramírez, explained that his jurisdiction carries out prevention actions to eliminate mosquito breeding sites throughout the year. “Although there was an increase in cases, the health system is not stressed in our province. There are 145.7 cases per 100,000 inhabitants in Misiones. In provinces like Chaco, there are 847 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, and in Brazil, 816 cases,” he expressed.
“Dengue cases are growing significantly. It is likely that the number of cases will be higher than in 2023,” Dr. Eduardo López, director of the pediatric infectious disease specialist program at the University of Buenos Aires (UBA), head of the Department of Medicine at the Children’s Hospital, told Infobae. Ricardo Gutiérrez and former president of the Society of Pediatric Infectology (SADIP).
It is likely that the number of dengue cases in 2024 will be higher than in 2023, according to Eduardo López, director of the pediatric infectious disease specialist program at the University of Buenos Aires (UBA)/Getty Images
“The use of repellent was limited due to a lack of the product and when it returned to the shelves it was with a significant (price) increase,” López commented.
Meanwhile, Leda Guzzi, infectious disease doctor and member of the Argentine Society of Infectious Diseases (SADI), commented to Infobae: “Cases are increasing. It is the worst season not only because of the number of cases, but they were brought forward since the epidemic peak is usually observed in February and March. Without a doubt, climate change, abundant rain and humidity favored the growth of the mosquito population, which is a vector of the dengue virus.”
Furthermore, Guzzi highlighted: “The increase in the price of repellent limits access. “It is a barrier.” He also pointed out that community removal actions are key to eliminating mosquito breeding sites in and around homes.
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