Costa Rica registers strong increase of dengue in current rainy season

Costa Rica has registered a strong increase in cases of dengue so far in the current rainy season, with 70% more infections than in the same period last year, the Ministry of Health reported Friday.

As of June 2019, 1,666 cases of dengue have been registered, compared to 975 over the same period in 2018, the Health Ministry said in a statement.

The information was released at a time when the country is entering a season of increased rainfall, which favors the spread of the Aedes aegypti mosquito, the transmitter of the disease.

“We are entering the most complicated time of the year, where the increase in rainfall raises cases (of dengue), which is why we call for citizens to be vigilant in the elimination of mosquito breeding sites,” said Rodrigo Marín, Director of Ministry Surveillance.

The mosquito transmitting dengue reproduces in stagnant water, so health authorities are asking citizens to empty containers that contain accumulations of water — vases and discarded tires, for example.

Dengue fever is a disease that causes high fever, rash, and muscle and joint pains.
The mosquito that serves as a vector of the disease also transmits zika, which recently caused a plague in Latin America.

Costa Rica in 2018 had its lowest number of dengue infections in the last 20 years, with 2,735 cases in total.