Tally of dengue cases crosses 1,000 in Ghaziabad, fresh cases on the decline

Officials of the district health department said that the number of fresh dengue cases has been declining in the district even as the tally of cases, according to official data, stood at 1,044 till Saturday

Officials of the district health department said that the number of fresh dengue cases has been declining in the district even as the tally of cases, according to official data, stood at 1,044 till Saturday.

Ghaziabad, India - October 22: A view inside the Dengue ward at District Combined Hospital, Sanjay Nagar, in Ghaziabad, India, on Friday, October 22, 2021. (Photo by Sakib Ali /Hindustan Times)

According to official data, the total tally of dengue cases is highest in the district after 2013, when the number of cases stood at 1,622. However, so far, the district health department has not reported any dengue death compared to 2013, when four fatalities from the infection were reported.

The first dengue case in the district was reported on September 1 with the month recording 312 cases followed by 647 cases in October. As many as 85 dengue cases have been reported so far in November. The district breached the 1,000 cases mark on November 3.

According to the official data, the daily average of dengue cases was about 10.4 in September which shot up to 20.87 in October. In the current month, 14.16 dengue cases are being reported on an average per day.

“The number of dengue cases reported daily on average has declined in November. This is because the temperature has suddenly dropped and more relief is expected by end of November. With the ongoing trend, we are expecting that there will be no fresh cases by mid December,” said Dr Rakesh Gupta, district surveillance officer.

“In 2013, the total number of dengue cases stood at 1,622. If the current declining trend continues, we hope the current tally of dengue cases will not cross 2013’s figure. As for our part, our teams are continuing fogging and spraying of anti-larvae in high caseload areas and every case is being mapped for containment,” said Gupta.

In 2014, the overall dengue tally in the district stood at 928 and then onwards, there has been a decline in the total number of cases reported in a year.

“This year, there have been more cases due to the prolonged monsoon and heavy rains which caused waterlogging in many areas. If there has been a minor decline in fresh cases, we need to observe it further for some more weeks before we can say that it is actually on decline. In the previous years, there has been a declining trend in dengue cases after the temperature falls right after Diwali,” said Dr Ashish Agarwal, former president of Indian Medical Association (Ghaziabad).

Unlike dengue, cases of malaria stood were under control. The total tally of malaria cases stands at 16, with one case reported in October and none in November so far.

Likewise, the tally of scrub typhus also stood at 39 with no cases in October and November.

“Cases of malaria and scrub typhus were majorly reported in September. No cases from either of the infection have emerged in the following months,” said Dr Gupta.