REFERRING to The Star’s various reports recently on the dengue outbreak, let me say that an epidemic is said to exist when the incidence (number of new cases within a certain period) of the disease exceeds the usual incidence of that same period. Hence, “spikes” are epidemics when significantly sustained. From the statistics provided by the Health Ministry through news reports over the past weeks, it appears there is a dengue epidemic throughout the country (at least in most states).
While community health education, inspection and enforcement are important aspects of dengue control, early detection, prompt notification (through a Health Ministry phone hotline), prompt isolation of dengue cases, and prompt fogging (to kill adult mosquitoes) of the affected area (homes and working places), are more important.
