Bangladesh sees worst single-day surge in dengue cases and deaths this year

Dhaka: Dengue infections are climbing rapidly across Bangladesh, with health officials reporting the biggest single-day rise in both deaths and hospital admissions this year.

Twelve people have died in the past 24 hours and 740 new patients have been hospitalised with the mosquito-borne disease, the Directorate General of Health Services said on Sunday. So far this year, dengue has killed at least 179 people and infected nearly 42,000 nationwide.

Children are increasingly crowding into hospital wards, many arriving with high fever, rashes, and dehydration. Some develop severe complications.

“Children are more vulnerable to rapid fluid loss and shock, which makes severe dengue extremely dangerous for them,” said physician ABM Abdullah, urging parents not to ignore early symptoms like a persistent fever or bleeding gums.

Entomologists say changing weather patterns are worsening the outbreak. “The monsoon is stretching longer than usual, creating standing water almost everywhere,” said Kabirul Bashar, a zoology professor at Jahangirnagar University.

“This prolonged wet season is giving mosquitoes more time and space to breed, and it is intensifying the outbreak.”

Bangladesh’s rapid urbanisation, poor waste management, and stagnant water at construction sites have further expanded mosquito breeding grounds.

With hospitals under strain and infections climbing steadily, doctors fear the crisis will deepen in the coming weeks.

The crisis is being compounded by a rise in chikungunya cases. Unlike dengue, chikungunya rarely causes death but often leaves patients - both children and adults - suffering from severe joint pain and lingering weakness.

The worst year on record for Bangladesh was 2023, when dengue killed 1,705 people and infected more than 321,000. Experts fear that without stronger preventive measures such deadly cycles will continue