In a follow-up on a report early last month, Senior Medical Officer (SMO) for St Catherine, Dr Prosper Chen said that the parish recorded more than 520 notifications for dengue in the month of January alone.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), in 2018, a total of 986 suspected and confirmed cases of dengue including 13 deaths have been reported.
By the end of 2018, the largest number of reported cases were notified by Kingston and Saint Andrew parishes. However, as noted above, the largest proportion of cases have been reported by Saint Catherine parish so far in 2019.
Laboratory tests have identified DENV3 as the dengue serotype currently circulating.
The Jamaica Ministry of Health (MoH) declared the dengue outbreak on 3 January 2019.
Health authorities in Jamaica are implementing measures for the following activities; strengthened integrated vector control, enhanced surveillance of cases, social mobilization, clinical management, enhanced laboratory diagnostic capacity, and emergency risk communications.
- Lassa fever case in Guinea
- Measles in Illinois: 2nd case reported in the University of Illinois campus community
- Taiwan reports 1st locally transmitted dengue case in Kaohsiung
- Saudi Arabia reports increase in MERS cases
- Washington: Measles outbreak rises to 47 confirmed in Clark County
- Meningitis B: Two cases reported in Columbia University students
