The World Health Organization issued a warning on Wednesday, stating that climate change was causing dengue and other arbovirus-borne diseases to spread far more quickly and widely over the world.
The growing number of dengue and chikungunya cases alarmed experts at the UN health agency, who also warned that fresh zika epidemics may be anticipated.
All three are brought on by arboviruses, which are disseminated over the world by Aedes aegypti mosquitos as the earth heats.
“Climate change has played a key role in facilitating the spread of the vector mosquitoes,” said Raman Velayudhan, who coordinates WHO’s dengue and arbovirus initiative.
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In light of worries about greater outbreaks in new locations, he and his colleague Diana Rojas Alvarez, WHO’s technical head on chikungunya and zika, emphasized the need for quick action to stop mosquito transmission.
In addition, Rojas Alvarez told newsmen that chikungunya, which has been documented in 115 nations since it was first identified in 1950, is seeing a sharp increase in the Americas.
She said in comparison to the 50,000 cases reported during the first half of 2022, there have been about 135,000 cases reported there so far this year.
Story was adapted from Medical Xpress