Deaths from dengue in Brazil reach the highest level since 1980

The Ministry of Health registered 987 deaths from dengue in this year, the highest number since the disease returned to Brazil, in 1980, according to the Brazilian Society of Epidemiology. The growth in the death rate from the disease this year was 400% higher than in 2021, when there were 246 deaths.

The number of cases has also grown. 163% compared to last yearreaching 1.4 million infections. The state that leads the number of infected is São Paulo, with 278 cases. Then come Goiás (154), Paraná (108), Santa Catarina (88) and Rio Grande do Sul (66).

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Brazil had broken the historic record in 2015, when the annual number of deaths was 986. However, as there are 100 more deaths under investigation and the last update on the death numbers was made on December 17, the country can reach more than a thousand deaths from dengue by the end of 2022.

Number of deaths from chikungunya also increased in 2022

Also according to the Ministry of Health, until December 17th, 93 deaths from chikungunya in Brazil, a disease that is also caused by the mosquito aedes aegypti. The number is seven times higher than in 2021, the year in which 14 deaths from the disease were recorded. In addition, the number of probable cases of chikungunya has also grown. 78% compared to 2021. This year, 172,082 suspected cases of the disease were registered in Brazil.

How to protect yourself from dengue and chikungunya?

Dengue is transmitted by the female aedes aegyptian urban and diurnal mosquito that reproduces in stagnant water deposits. The best way to prevent the disease is the dengue vaccine, made with attenuated and tetravalent virus, protecting against the four existing dengue serotypes.

Read more: Why do some people attract more mosquitoes than others?

In addition, some habits can contribute to prevention, such as avoiding the accumulation of water in tires and bottles, putting screen on the windows, sand in potted plants, disinfectant in the drains, cleaning the gutters and using repellents when traveling or in places with a lot of mosquitoes. . The same goes for chikungunya, as the transmitting mosquito is the same.