The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has issued a new warning about the increased risk of dengue infection in the Americas after a “record-breaking number” of dengue cases were reported.
More than 9.7 million dengue cases were recorded in the Americas between Jan. 1 and June 24 of this year, more than double the 4.6 million cases recorded in all of 2023, according to the CDC.
“The global incidence of dengue in 2024 was the highest ever recorded for this year, with many countries reporting higher than average numbers of dengue cases,” it added. “Countries in the Americas recorded their highest ever number of dengue cases in 2024, surpassing the highest number ever recorded in a single year.”
The CDC says dengue is the “most common” mosquito-borne disease in the world. In the United States, Florida has reported the most cases so far this year with 197, followed by New York with 134, Massachusetts with 50 and California with 40.
The spread of dengue fever is caused by the Asian tiger mosquito
The CDC says the number of dengue virus infections recorded in the Americas so far this year is “record-breaking.” (iStock)
“Six U.S. territories and freely associated states – Puerto Rico, American Samoa, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau – are classified as areas with frequent or persistent dengue transmission,” the CDC added.
Health officials say one in four people infected with dengue will experience symptoms, including fever and “nausea, vomiting, rash, muscle, joint and bone pain, pain behind the eyes, headache and low white blood cell count.”
According to the CDC, “1 in 20 people with symptomatic dengue fever develop severe illness with severe bleeding, shock, difficulty breathing, or end-organ damage due to plasma leakage.”
Puerto Rico health officials declare dengue fever a public health emergency
The recent spread of dengue virus in Europe has been blamed on the Asian tiger mosquito. (iStock)
The report said that infants under one year old, pregnant women and adults over 65 years of age are “at high risk of severe dengue fever” and that “in many tropical and subtropical regions, transmission peaks during the warmer, rainier months”.
According to the CDC, there is currently no medicine to treat dengue fever.
On June 24, workers were filmed releasing smoke while eradicating Aedes aegypti or Aedes albopictus mosquitoes, which transmit the dengue virus, in San Salvador, El Salvador. (Aphotografia/Getty Images)
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Infected people are advised to rest, take acetaminophen to reduce pain and fever, drink fluids, and seek medical attention.
Fox News’ Melissa Ruddy contributed to this report.
