SELANGOR is expected to face a 150% spike in dengue fever cases this year or next year if the breeding sites of Aedes mosquitoes are not dealt with seriously by the community.

State Public Health, Unity, Women and Family Development Committee chairman, Dr Siti Mariah Mahmud said as of February 11, which is the sixth epidemiological week (ME), a total of 6,870 cases was recorded, an increase of 141.4% compared with the same period, last year.

“With the number of dengue cases close to 40,000 last year, just imagine (spike in cases in 2024) if it is not contained,” she told a press conference in Shah Alam today.

She said that based on the dengue fever cycle that occurs in Malaysia over a period of 20 years, every four to five years this country is expected to experience a steep rise in dengue cases.

“It is expected that a steep rise in cases will occur in 2023 or 2024 after the highest dengue outbreak in 2019,” she said adding that 510 dengue outbreak localities were detected in the state in the sixth ME with an increase of 8.5% compared with 470 localities recorded in the previous week.

During the period, Petaling district recorded the highest number of localities at 203, followed by Hulu Langat (120), Klang (82) and Gombak (69).

Following that, with almost RM1 million allocation, she said the state government, in collaboration with the state Health Department and relevant agencies, implemented integrated dengue operations, starting yesterday until March 22, which will focus on the four districts with the highest cumulative dengue cases. – Bernama, February 16, 2023.