Although the number of new dengue patients admitted to hospitals in the country has decreased, the number of newly identified dengue patients remains higher outside the capital.
The Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) suspects the sudden decline does not indicate that the scenario is under control as the peaking of dengue in the country is yet to come.
DGHS's Health Emergency Operations Center and Control Room says some 1,880 new dengue patients were admitted to hospitals from Tuesday morning till 8am on Wednesday.
Of them, 755 patients are in the city and 1,125 are outside the capital.
The control room said some 46,351 patients have been infected this year. Some 83% (38,442) of them have been released from hospitals.
On August 7, some 2,428 dengue patients, the highest number for any given day this year, were admitted to hospitals throughout the country. For the next five days, the daily number of people newly infected by dengue, remained at over 2000. On Eid day, the number went down to 1200.
Based on this, Health Minister Zahid Malek on the second day of Eid, said the number of new patients is declining as the general population is becoming 'aware' of dengue.
But on the second day of Eid, DGHS recorded that more than 1800 people were admitted to hospitals affected by dengue.
Assistant Director of the control room, Ayesha Akhter said, after Eid many patients were admitted to hospitals with minor fever, in addition to other critically infected dengue patients.
The control room said some 40 people have died of dengue until now. But Dhaka Tribune data shows the number is reportedly more than 90 and some news media is saying the unofficial number has already crossed 100.
The death toll has officially remained the same for the last four days, but according to data provided to Dhaka Tribune, at least 13 people died in Rangpur Medical College Hospital.
Dr Ayesha Akhter said: “As September is also a rainy season, it can never be said that the outbreak has started to decline. It would take at least 10 more days to understand the current situation.”
Meanwhile, at a DGHS press briefing, line director of CDC, Dr Sanya Tahmina, said the peak of dengue fever was September last year and the time has not arrived yet to determine the peak this year.
