The number of dengue patients recorded in the first half of this year was almost triple the figure recorded in the same period last year, according to the Department of Disease Control (DDC).
The total number of dengue patients recorded from Jan 1 to June 28 was 27,377, close to three times the number recorded in the same period last year, said the DDC.
Among the 27,377 cases, 33 patients have died, it added.
The virus spreads to people through the bites of infected Aedes-species mosquitoes.
Last month alone, between 1,500 and 2,400 new patients were confirmed to have dengue every week, and of this number, one to three patients died as a result of the infection, said the DDC.
Most of these patients were people in the age range of five to 14 years, followed by ones in the age range of 15–24 years, said the DDC, adding that the South recorded the highest number of patients, followed by Bangkok and Central Plains provinces.
Dr Thira Woratanarat, an associate professor at Department of Preventive and Social Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, meanwhile, warned against the casual use of aspirin when having a fever because if the fever is actually caused by dengue virus infection, aspirin heightens the risk of developing Reye’s syndrome (RS).
RS is rare disorder that affects all organs of the body but is most harmful to the brain and the liver — causing an acute increase of pressure within the brain and often massive accumulations of fat in the liver and other organs.