Bangladesh recorded 11 more deaths from dengue fever in a single day, bringing the death toll to 459 since the beginning of the year, the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) reported.

The DGHS also confirmed 1,079 new dengue cases in the past 24 hours as of 8:00 a.m. local time Sunday, raising the total number of infections this year to 86,791, with 24,974 cases reported in November alone.

This year has seen an unprecedented surge in dengue fatalities, with 1,705 deaths recorded so far—the highest annual death toll in the country’s history. For comparison, there were 281 dengue-related deaths in 2022 and 179 in 2019.

The monthly breakdown of dengue-related fatalities this year includes 144 deaths in November, 135 in October, 87 in September, 30 in August, and 14 in July.

Dengue fever, caused by the dengue virus and transmitted by infected Aedes mosquitoes, is characterized by symptoms such as high fever, severe muscle and joint pain, headache, vomiting, rash, and swollen glands.

To combat the outbreak, Bangladeshi health authorities have intensified measures to curb mosquito breeding and are conducting extensive anti-larval operations across the country. The government continues to urge citizens to take preventive actions to minimize the spread of the disease. (ILKHA)