Havana/This Wednesday, the Cuban Ministry of Public Health warned that the cases of dengue and chikungunya registered on the Island have increased by more than 71% in just seven days. The Vice Minister of Public Health, Carilda Peña García, reported on state television that the incidence rate went from 3.81 to 6.52 per 100,000 inhabitants compared to the same day the previous week.
With a population of 9.7 million, this represents an estimated jump from 369 to 632 daily infections in just one week. The Pan American Health Organization reported until the end of November a cumulative number of 25,995 cases in the country.
Although the vice minister pointed out that some indicators show stability compared to the previous day, professionals in the sector point out that this apparent improvement does not necessarily correspond to a real reduction in infections. The insufficiency of diagnostic tests, the shortage of PCR reagents and limited hospital capacity directly influence the number of cases detected and reported.
This apparent improvement does not necessarily correspond to a real reduction in infections.
So far, authorities have confirmed 44 deaths associated with dengue and chikungunya. However, the lack of complete information and the under-reporting of cases do not allow us to have an objective overview of the situation. This lack of clarity continues to raise public concern at a time when hospitals and funeral homes are operating under unsustainable pressure.
The epidemic is expanding in a scenario aggravated by the economic crisis, which limits mass fumigation, diagnostic confirmation and clinical care. The shortage of insecticides, fuel, medicines and specialized personnel has favored the spread of these arboviruses, with a particular impact on children and pregnant women, who depend on an increasingly overloaded health system. The vice minister acknowledged that the majority of patients who are currently in critical condition are under 18 years of age.
In some cases, children are even reported to be infected during pregnancy, as is the case of Maylom Martínez Abreu, a baby who contracted chikungunya in his mother’s womb and who, after spending 46 days intubated at the Jose Ramón López Tabrane Gynecobstetric Hospital, was finally discharged on December 9.
Another case, reported to 14ymedio and that opens the door to the question of whether the regime hides or conceals data, is that of some Cubans residing abroad who recently visited the Island and tested positive for West Nile Fever, an extremely dangerous arbovirus due to its high mortality. Although on November 20 Francisco Durán, director of the National Epidemiology of the Ministry of Health, denied that the virus was circulating in Cuba, data published by the Pedro Kouri Institute of Tropical Medicine have confirmed that there is scientific evidence to determine the possible presence of the virus on the Island, as is happening in other regions of the Caribbean.
