KUALA LUMPUR: While the Ebola threat has captured headlines, the World Health Organization (WHO) warns that dengue - while far less lethal - has become one of the fastest-growing global health threats, contracted by 50-100 million people each year.
"The increase in dengue incidence and severity of the outbreaks is a global phenomenon, with a 30-fold increase over the past five decades," said Ahmed Jamsheed Mohamed, a doctor in the WHO's South-East Asia office, adding that eradication is "not seen as feasible in the near future".