Spatial distribution of dengue serotype-specific cases in settings of Uttar Pradesh, India
Khushbu Kumari, Vinod Joshi, Bennet Angel, Annette Angel, Aarya Chitransh, Reshu Chauhan, Monika Dheer, Prigya Sharma, Rashmi ChouhanABSTRACT
Background:
Dengue is an emerging vector-borne disease of high significance to public health. Severe forms of dengue fever, such as Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever and Dengue Shock Syndrome, may lead to fatal consequences in areas where more than one dengue serotype is present.
Aim:
The present study was conducted to study the various serotypes of Dengue virus circulating in a locality and that it may be made known to the clinicians, public health professionals, and stakeholders such that a collective strategy for controlling the disease transmission can be developed.
Materials and Methods:
A hospital-based surveillance study was conducted over 1 year, specifically from June 2023 to October 2024, and the spatial distribution of DENV types among various local administrative sub-districts in India, comprising a town or city acting as its headquarters, along with surrounding villages (tehsils), was observed. Blood samples from the patients were subjected to IFAT for the presence of DENV using DENV type-specific antibodies.
Results:
Tehsil 2 reported the maximum number of dengue cases compared to the other tehsils. However, another interesting observation was that although the reporting was less in the other areas, there was more than one DENV strain in individual patients.
Conclusion:
The present study highlights the need for vigorous prevention and control measures to be adopted in these settings to prevent the transmission of multiple DENV types and minimise the severity of the disease.