It is a tropical disease which is transmitted mainly by mosquito bites. Dengue is making a comeback in Martinique and the epidemic continues to progress. Three people have died since September 18, including a child, according to the Regional Health Agency (ARS) Thursday evening. According to the health authorities, these three deaths are “directly attributable to dengue fever after a collegial medical examination”.
Among these three victims, a nine-year-old child, living in the town of Anses-d’Arlet in the south of the island, died this week after several days of hospitalization, AFP learned from the mayor of the town. , Eugène Larcher. “We have set up a psychological listening unit,” the elected official told AFP. “We also alerted the ARS to come to the site to identify larval breeding sites and be able to eradicate these mosquitoes.”
A high incidence rate
Martinique and Guadeloupe have been in an epidemic phase since mid-August. The illness can present with high fevers, headaches, body aches, nausea and skin rashes.
For several weeks, municipalities in the south of Martinique, including Anses-d’Arlet, have displayed one of the highest incidence rates in the overseas territory, with a prevalence of 100 cases per 10,000 inhabitants according to the latest weekly bulletin from Public Health France. According to this same source, the symbolic threshold of 1,000 cases per week was crossed last week on the Caribbean island of 352,000 inhabitants. “Since the start of the epidemic, there have been 13 serious cases including six deaths,” indicates the ARS.