Dengue fever cases rise by 50pc

Chief Medical Officer, Prof Muhammad Kambi. Photo |Elizabeth Edward

Dar es Salaam. Cases of patients being diagnosed with dengue fever in Dar es Salaam have increased by 50.8 per cent in a week, the chief medical officer, Prof Muhammad Kambi, revealed during a press conference on May 16.


Prof Kambi said the number jumped to 1,809 this week compared to 1,200 recorded in the previous week. Countrywide, the total number of patients recorded stands at 1,901.
The increase, Prof Kambi, said, is an average of 75 patients daily as Ilala District leads with 235 patients per day.


“Going by these statistics, it means that we still have a long way to go in ensuring not only education on how to fight against dengue reaches people, but also the precautions being taken against it,” noted Prof Kambi.
He assured reporters that the government was taking apt measures to stamp out the problem.

The steps taken include intensifying education on how people must protect themselves against mosquitoes that transmit the dengue virus.

Such measures, he said, include a campaign for environmental cleanliness to get rid of mosquitoes’ breeding grounds, and reminding patients of reporting to hospital when they experience symptoms.


Prof Kambi said the government had bolstered the capacity of hospitals and health centres to test the dengue fever by  procuring more equipment.