So far this year, 16,143 cases of dengue have been reported in the country and the epidemiological situation worries specialists. While Anmat advances with the analysis of the Japanese vaccine that could bring some relief to Argentina, officials from the health portfolios of the entire country agreed to intensify prevention actions and form territorial brigades in search of eliminating potential breeding grounds for the Aedes aegypti mosquito.
“We had national dengue epidemics in 2008-2009, 2015-2016 and 2019-2020. The gap in the time interval between national epidemics is getting shorter and underreporting is very important, because people do not consult or because they do not the serological study is done to confirm the disease,” Silvia González Ayala (MP 91,229), an infectious disease specialist and teacher, told TN.
In the same vein, he specified that dengue epidemics in the metropolitan area “are usually expected for the second half of March and last around four to six weeks,” so at this time it is “in full swing.”
“The final numbers will tell if this situation is of greater magnitude than the 2019-2020 epidemic, but what is striking is the number of deaths, which is above what happened in the other national epidemics,” he warned. At the moment, 5 deaths have been confirmed.
Waiting for the Japanese vaccine
The National Administration of Medicines, Food and Medical Technology (Anmat) is analyzing the Qdenga vaccine, from the Japanese company Takeda, a tetravalent serum that was approved a month ago in Brazil and that could follow the same path in Argentina in the coming days. .
“The vaccine that is already in Brazil is very interesting because it covers four serotypes in one,” said Elena Obieta (MN 76,451), an infectologist at the Boulogne Hospital (San Isidro) and a member of the Argentine Society of Infectious Diseases (SADI).
The expectation for the Japanese serum is growing, but meanwhile, infections continue to grow and specialists warn that prevention and mosquito eradication actions must be intensified.
According to official figures, of the 16,143 new dengue infections reported in the latest epidemiological report, 14,224 acquired the infection in Argentina, that is, they are autochthonous cases.
The circulation of the virus was identified in 14 jurisdictions: Buenos Aires, the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires (CABA), Córdoba, Entre Ríos, Santa Fe, Corrientes, Formosa, Chaco, Catamarca, Jujuy, Salta, Santiago del Estero, Tucumán and La Rioja. .
As with the coronavirus outbreaks, almost all Argentines know someone who has contracted the disease.
Coordinated actions against dengue
On alert due to the epidemiological situation, the Federal Health Council (Cofesa) – made up of the health portfolios of the 24 jurisdictions of the country – met this Thursday to analyze and unify actions.
As officially reported, the officials agreed to “form proximity territorial brigades, with health agents, operational forces and intermediate organizations, to raise awareness about prevention and care actions, mainly in the elimination of potential Aedes aegypti breeding sites.”
“With operations to clear and clear land, these brigades of workers can carry out work in common spaces and significantly reduce the possibility of an increase in outbreaks,” said the chief of staff of the national Ministry of Health, Sonia Tarragona.
