Dengue cases on the rise, says MOH

The Ministry of Health and Wellness says that as of Monday, there have been 316 suspected, presumed, and confirmed dengue cases in Jamaica. 

Based on data from the ministry’s National Surveillance Unit, when compared to the same period in 2022, this number marks an almost five-fold increase.  

This was revealed by health minister Dr Christopher Tufton on Wednesday at the ministry’s quarterly press conference.  

He further said that based on laboratory results, there has been a total of 39 positive cases, 38 of which were identified as Dengue Serotype 2 and one case identified as dengue Serotype 4. 

Tufton raised concern about the younger population being more susceptible to the virus.

“It is important to highlight that of the 39 confirmed cases of Dengue, a total of 20 belong in the 5 to 14-year-old age group...and so part of the call from ministry of health is to encourage parents to treat children who have a fever with paracetamol and to avoid aspiring and aspiring-like medication such as ibuprofen and diclofenac,” he said. 

Tufton also noted that  while all parishes have had cases of Dengue reported, the recent confirmed cases were detected in the parishes of Kingston & St Andrew, St Thomas,  St Catherine, Westmoreland, Portland and St Ann. 

He expressed that while Jamaica has seen continuous local transmission of the Dengue virus since 1977, the presence of the Type 2 strain has not predominated in the population since 2010. This heightens the island's risk of a possible outbreak. 

- Asha Wilks

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