JAKARTA: Dengue hemorrhagic fever (DBD) in Indonesia is getting crazier.
The number of cases and deaths will jump three times higher than in 2023.
“The number of deaths due to dengue fever rose three times compared to the same week (15th week) in the previous year,” said Head of Communications and Public Services at the Ministry of Health (Kemenkes) Siti Nadia Tarmizi to Kompas.com, Thursday (18 April).
Nadia said that so far, based on the latest data in the 15th week, there were 62,001 cases of dengue fever with an incidence rate of 22.16 per 100,000 population.
The number of deaths was recorded at 475 people who died or a death rate of 0.77 percent.
In the same period in 2023, there will only be 22,551 cases of dengue fever and 170 deaths.
The highest number of dengue fever cases is in West Java province with 17,311 cases.
Banten Province is in second place with 5,877 cases, followed by Central Java with 4,330 cases, East Java with 3,638 cases, and North Sulawesi with 2,763 cases.
West Java also recorded the highest death rate with 158 people dying.
Deaths due to dengue were recorded in 151 districts and cities from 28 provinces in Indonesia.
In Jakarta alone, there have been 3,875 cases of dengue fever in Jakarta since the beginning of 2024.
The details are 310 cases in January and 767 cases in February.
DHF cases skyrocketed to 2,163 in March, then fell to 635 cases in April.
Head of the DKI Jakarta Health Service, Ani Ruspitawati, told detikNews that six people had died.
The Director General of Disease Prevention and Control at the Ministry of Health, Maxi Rein Rondonuwu, explained that the number of dengue cases will likely continue to increase until a seasonal transition occurs.
Maxi appealed to the public to remain calm and emphasized the importance of eradicating mosquito nests regularly and thoroughly, especially during the rainy season.
The rampant cases of dengue fever have prompted the issuance of instructions from a number of acting regional heads asking residents to use anti-mosquito lotion to prevent exposure.
