The total number of suspected dengue fever cases in Sudan has exceeded 4,000 as the African country faces its worst outbreak of the disease in years, the Sudanese health ministry said.
“There are 4,104 suspected cases of dengue, including 516 confirmed cases and 29 deaths,” the ministry said in a report released on Tuesday, adding that the infectious disease has spread to nine states in Sudan.
Montasir Mohamed Osman, director of the Department of Health Emergencies and Epidemic Control at the Sudanese Ministry of Health, said in a press release that this wide spread of dengue fever was attributed to heavy rainfall and lack of essential supplies. such as pesticides and mosquito nets.
Dengue viruses are transmitted to humans through mosquito bites. Almost half of the world’s population, around four billion people, live in areas at risk of dengue fever.
In a report released in November, the United Nations warned of the trend of rising malaria cases and outbreaks of measles, dengue and hepatitis E in Sudan, calling these contagious diseases “serious concern”.
