Dengue cases have been rising steadily in the national Capital but doctors from major government and private hospitals in the city said they are observing “mild to moderate” symptoms in patients.
Health experts, however, warned that the case count is expected to increase further in the coming days on account of the recent rain in Delhi and NCR.
Dr BL Sherwal, medical superintendent, Safdarjung Hospital, said that the cases have seen a spike over the last two weeks and are expected to rise further in the coming days on account of the recent rain spell in Delhi and NCR.
“With the recent rain and the high humidity levels, dengue cases are expected to rise further in the coming days. People must ensure that they do not allow stagnation of water in their premises. The positive sign, however, is that the cases coming in now are not very severe,” said Dr Sherwal.
Records maintained by the fever clinics of major hospitals including Lok Nayak Hospital, Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital and Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital also show that over the last two weeks there are more dengue and chikungunya cases as compared to Covid-19 cases.
Similar trends are also being seen in private facilities.
Dr Rajinder Kumar Singal, senior director and head of the department of internal medicine at BLK-Max Super Speciality Hospital, said that it is imperative that people follow precautionary measures to avoid infection. He explained that the common symptoms of dengue include fever, muscle and joint aches, nausea or vomiting and in certain cases skin rash.
“Every two to three years, dengue cases tend to witness a spike, and this seems to be that year. Every day we are seeing around 10-12 patients getting diagnosed with dengue but very few of them are requiring hospitalisations,” Dr Singal said.
According to the data maintained by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), in September, the city recorded 281 cases of dengue taking the total tally for the year to 525—the highest for the period in the last four years.
Between January and September, 2021, Delhi had reported 273 dengue cases; in 2020, the cases were 212; in 2019, it was 282 and in 2018, Delhi reported 481 dengue cases.
In 2017, Delhi had reported 1,807 cases in the period.
Health experts from hospitals across the city said that while there is an uptick in patients coming into fever clinics with dengue, especially over the last two-three weeks, the symptoms are largely “mild to moderate”.
This is corroborated by the number, as the city has not recorded any dengue death so far.
Last year, 23 people died of the vector-borne disease; in 2020, one person succumbed to the infection; in 2019, there were two deaths; in 2018, there were four and in 2017, 10 people lost their lives to dengue.