Uptick in dengue cases

Dengue fever is still a battle here in the Marshall Islands. The Journal visited the dengue ward for children and adults late last week. We were told by one of the nurses that they just discharged two patients and had another one being admitted. While the numbers are still low compared too early in the year, they have gone up this past month. Staff at the dengue ward said they hope dengue is not coming back. Photo: Eve Burns.

GIFF JOHNSON

An emergency medical situation the first week of September involving a patient from Mili Atoll with dengue fever has increased concern at the Ministry of Health and Human Services about a possible resurgence of the illness on the outer islands — in line with an uptick of cases in Majuro in recent weeks.

Dengue fever spread from Ebeye to Majuro in late August a year ago and over the next two months, high numbers were reported in the capital and hospitalizations skyrocketed. The numbers dropped off toward the end of the year. But Christmas activity appeared to fuel a resurgence of the problem, which hit hard again starting with the new year.

At one point early this year, Majuro hospital was averaging close to 30 cases per day, as dengue patients jammed the emergency room and the dengue ward.

In February, dengue cases peaked at nearly 200 in one week, before starting a decline. Then, by April, the case load stayed low, around 20 cases per week.

But over a year since the first case showed up in Majuro, dengue won’t let go. Unlike Ebeye, which managed to eradicate the sickness in less than three months from the initial case in June 2019, Majuro has not seen a week with zero dengue cases reported to the hospital.

In a 10-week period from the end of May through the beginning of August, eight of the 10 weeks showed single digit numbers. But three of the four weeks that ended August showed over 10 cases each, with the week ending August 23 numbers rising to 20.

Ministry of Health officials expressed concern that with the nation concerned about Covid-19 and other issues, people may have forgotten about dengue fever.

“We still have dengue,” said Health Secretary Jack Niedenthal earlier this week. The latest report from the ministry, for the week ending September 13, shows 21 cases for Majuro.

An emergency case was seen from Mili after many weeks with no reported cases from any outer island. The last reported dengue case on an outer island was in Jaluit in mid-June. The ministry is urging government offices and the public to not be complacent about the extended dengue outbreak. The ministry, said Niedenthal is “concerned that it could get out of hand again.”

From June 2019 through the end of August this year, the Ministry of Health has recorded 3,572 dengue-like illnesses. Most of these have been in Majuro, with 3,129 recorded at Majuro hospital. Of the RMI-wide total, 1,706 were confirmed by laboratory testing to be dengue.

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