The Ministry of Health and Wellness says the number of confirmed dengue cases as of January 4, 2024 is 1,534.

Information obtained by Our Today indicates that the National Surveillance Unit in the health ministry got 9,395 notifications of the virus. Of that number, 7,571 were suspected, probable, and confirmed cases of dengue.

A total of 1,534 cases were confirmed as dengue. Of that number, it says 1,368 are Dengue Stereotype 2. One case is a coinfection with stereotypes 2 and 3. Four cases are stereotype 3, and three cases are stereotype 4. The stereotype has not been determined for the remaining 158 cases.

There are six confirmed dengue-related deaths. Another 13 deaths are suspected to be dengue-related.

All parishes observed an increase in dengue cases in 2023, compared to 2022.

Kingston and St Andrew have more than 1,400 suspected and confirmed cases of dengue, the highest number among the 14 parishes. However, St Thomas maintains the highest rate with 634.6 cases per 100,000 population, followed by Trelawny (518.5) and Hanover with 440.8 cases per 100,000 population.

The highest number of suspected, probable, and confirmed dengue cases is recorded in the five to 14 years old age group, with a total of 3,358 cases, representing a rate of 833.9 cases per 100,000 population.

The Ministry of Health continues to schedule fogging islandwide to mitigate against dengue. Other measures such as de-bushing, clearing of drains, and a dengue education campaign are in progress.

Citizens who have contracted dengue are reminded that they should not use aspirins, ibuprofen, or any pain relievers known as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) to treat the virus because the drugs can increase its severity.

The Ministry of Health declared a dengue outbreak in Jamaica on September 23, 2023. The last dengue outbreak in Jamaica occurred in 2019. The outbreak lasted for a year, and more than 6,000 cases were reported.