Climate change is allowing mosquitoes to spread farther and faster, causing an explosion in cases of dengue and other arbovirus diseases and forcing the WHO to launch a global control plan to contain them.
“The rapid spread of dengue and other arbovirus diseases in recent years is an alarming trend that requires a coordinated response” across diverse sectors and across borders, says World Health Organization director-general (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, in a press release.
According to the UN organization, the number of cases of dengue serious enough to be tested has approximately doubled each year since 2021.
Over the first eight months of 2024, more than 7,900 deaths have already been reported, for more than 12.3 million cases proven or reported to the WHO.
That’s almost double the 6.5 million cases reported for all of 2023.
Cases are probably in the hundreds of millions but due to lack of testing or symptoms are not recorded.
Dengue can cause high fever and body aches, but most people have no symptoms, and the WHO estimates there are between 100 and 400 million infections each year.
The disease is caused by an arbovirus transmitted by Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, which are spreading to new geographic areas as the planet warms.
Factors such as unplanned urbanization and poor water use, sanitation and hygiene practices, as well as international travel have also facilitated the rapid spread of the disease.
It is already endemic in more than 130 countries, underlines the WHO.
It is currently estimated that four billion people worldwide – half the world’s population – are at risk of contracting dengue and other arboviruses, including chikungunya and zika, and that number is expected to rise to five billion by 2050. warns the organization.
The WHO plan aims to foster a coordinated global response, including disease surveillance, laboratory activities, disease vector control, and research and development of better treatments and effective vaccines.
The WHO has said it will need $55 million (50 million euros) in funding to implement the plan over the next year.
“From maintaining a clean environment to vector control, through research and the provision of timely medical care, everyone has a role to play in the fight against dengue,” insisted Dr. Tedros.
“This plan is a roadmap to turn the tide against this and other arbovirus diseases transmitted by Aedes (aegypti), protect vulnerable populations and pave the way for a healthier future,” he added .
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