CNN
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Dengue circumstances are surging within the Americas, with circumstances reported topping 5.2 million as of this week, surpassing a yearly document set in 2023, in accordance with the Pan American Well being Group (PAHO).

PAHO spokesperson Ashley Baldwin instructed CNN Thursday that 5,214,480 circumstances of dengue have been reported within the Americas as of Wednesday. In all of 2023, the full variety of circumstances reported within the area was 4,572,765.

“We’re in an emergency scenario due to dengue,” PAHO Director Jarbas Barbosa stated in a information briefing Thursday.

Nations within the southern hemisphere have been the toughest hit to this point, with Brazil accounting for a majority of the circumstances. In February, Rio de Janeiro declared a state of public well being emergency amid a spike in circumstances.

In Peru, 20 of the nation’s 25 area are beneath a well being alert because of the epidemic, which has surged to greater than 134,000 circumstances, the federal government stated this week.

The scenario seems to have stabilized in latest weeks in some South American hotspots, however PAHO warned that different international locations within the area, together with these within the northern hemisphere, should put together for the arrival of spring and hotter temperatures.

“Most circumstances within the southern hemisphere happen within the first half of the 12 months, and most circumstances within the northern hemisphere happen within the second half of the 12 months,” Baldwin stated. “To date, this 12 months, we have now seen circumstances peak within the south, and we might now count on a rise in circumstances within the north.”

The rise of dengue might be attributed to a number of components, PAHO says, together with rising temperatures, excessive climate occasions, speedy inhabitants progress, and insufficient water and sanitation providers, which may create mosquito breeding websites.

To date in 2024, the Americas have reported 1,858 deaths from the sickness, lower than final 12 months’s complete of two,418.

A vaccine for dengue is out there and may play a job in lowering extreme circumstances and deaths, Barbosa stated, however he warned it isn’t able to instantly interrupting outbreaks.

To attempt to management the outbreak, PAHO recommends implementing a method that focuses on surveillance, management of the mosquito vector that transmits the virus and scientific administration, Baldwin stated.

“Whereas there may be at the moment no particular remedy for dengue (at any scientific stage), most circumstances are delicate. Early detection and entry to correct medical care will scale back the chance of dying on account of extreme dengue,” Baldwin added.

Dengue is a mosquito-borne virus that’s unfold primarily by means of the Aedes aegypti mosquito, additionally identified to hold a number of different viruses, reminiscent of yellow fever, chikungunya, and Zika, in accordance with the US Facilities for Illness Management and Prevention (CDC). It causes flu-like signs and may result in dying in excessive circumstances.

The virus is endemic in additional than 100 international locations in tropical and subtropical climates, principally in city and semi-urban areas, in accordance with the World Well being Group. It’s additionally endemic within the US territories of Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands and American Samoa.