Bangladesh dengue deaths top 1,000 in worst outbreak on record

More than 1,000 people in Bangladesh have died of dengue fever this year, the country's worst recorded outbreak of the mosquito-borne disease. Dengue is a disease endemic to tropical areas and causes high fevers, headaches, nausea, vomiting, muscle pain and, in the most serious cases, bleeding that can lead to death.

The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that dengue and other diseases caused by mosquito-borne viruses such as chikungunya, yellow fever and Zika. Bangladesh's Directorate General of Health Services on Sunday said 1,006 people had died, among more than 200,000 confirmed cases. The new figures dwarf the previous highest total from 2022, when 281 deaths were recorded for the full year. Among the dead are 112 children aged 15 and under, including infants.