Dengue patients reach record high 

A total of 10,528 people were infected by dengue in the country in last seven months, according to official sources.

This is the highest number of dengue cases recorded in a year-on-basis.  Last year, the number of dengue-infected people was 10, 148. 

According to the official data released on Saturday, 2, 671 of the infected people were seeking treatment at different hospitals while another 7, 849 had received treatment and returned home. The number of new patients admitted to hospitals in the previous 24 hours were 683, the data revealed.

The Health Directorate also reported that 8 persons have died of dengue this year. However, private sources claimed that the number of deaths caused by the mosquito-borne disease in the said period is not less than 30.

In 2000, the number of dengue patients reached 5, 551, breaking all previous records. Ninety-three of them died of their ailment. 

The record was broken in 2018 as 10,148 dengue cases were recorded in that year. The number of deaths, however, was significantly low at 26.