Dengue, dengue every where

Recently I heard from a returned traveller who caught dengue in Sri Lanka. He spent time in hospital and had to prolong his stay there to be well enough to return home. It is important to know that currently there are increased numbers of dengue cases in a number of popular destinations including Sri Lanka. There have been an estimated 61,300 cases of dengue in Sri Lanka since May and nearly 9,000 cases a week are being diagnosed particularly in Colombo and Gampaha districts. The rate is 8 fold higher than average and the outbreak has not yet peaked.  In Laos more than 450 suspected cases of dengue per week are occurring primarily in Vientiane and the southern provinces of Attapu and Champasak while in India more than 16,200 suspected and confirmed cases of dengue (significantly higher than usual) have been reported since May 2017 in the south western states of Kerala and Tamil Nadu including in popular destinations. The outbreak has yet to peak. Cases have also been diagnosed in Mombasa, Kenya and American Samoa at increased rates recently. Dengue is spread by daytime biting mosquitoes which are ubiquitous so where ever you are remember to cover up and use repellent to reduce your risk of catching it.