Burkina: 214 deaths from dengue since January 1

An epidemic of dengue fever, a disease transmitted by mosquitoes, has killed 214 people in Burkina Faso since January 1, mainly in the capital Ouagadougou and Bobo-Dioulasso, the country's second city, the Burkinabe government announced Thursday.

“We note that from January 1 to October 15, 2023, a total of 50,478 suspected cases (of dengue fever) were reported, including 25,502 probable cases and 214 deaths,” the government said in a press release.

It underlines that “for the period alone from October 9 to 15, 2023, a number of 10,117 suspected cases were notified, including 4,377 probable cases and 48 deaths”.

“The dengue epidemic still remains active with two epicenters: Ouagadougou and Bobo-Dioulasso,” according to the Minister of Health, Robert Lucien Jean-Claude Kargougou.

He specified that the dengue epidemic was accompanied by the appearance since September of another disease also transmitted by mosquitoes, chikungunya.

“Since September until the past week we have recorded 207 confirmed cases in our country”, but no deaths, said Mr. Kargougou.

“To respond effectively to this health situation, a certain number of actions have been taken, including free rapid screening tests in public health structures,” he said.

A campaign to spray mosquito repellent products has also been launched in the two mainly affected towns.