Dengue in Caribbean

In the Caribbean islands of Aruba, the Bahamas and Santa Lucia, 2011 saw a higher-than-usual increase in the number of clinical cases of dengue fever as well as the more deadly form, Severe Dengue, during July and August

The Bahamas’ Ministry of Health said that outbreaks occur every five to eight years (336 in 1998, 180 in 2003 and 10 in 2010) but that in summer 2011 there were about 6,000 clinical cases in the Bahamas. By early November 2011, the total number of cases reported in the Caribbean was 12,856 (31 of those Severe Dengue), with 10 deaths.

The CDC states that dengue fever is the most common cause of fever in travelers returning from the Caribbean, Central America and South Central Asia. There is no vaccine or preventative medicine for dengue. Limiting exposure to mosquitoes is advised. Once someone is infected with dengue, he is a carrier; he also becomes more vulnerable to Severe Dengue if exposed to it in a bite.