[Epidemiology of dengue in Central America and the Dominican Republic]

Abstract

Background: Central America experiences a high burden of dengue reporting about 8% of all cases in the continent. This work reports the epidemiology of dengue in the sub region in a 10 years period.

Aim: To describe the epidemiology of dengue in Central America and the Dominican Republic.

Methods: Study period from 2005 to 2014. The data on dengue cases and deaths of the countries of Central America and the Dominican Republic, reported by the Ministries of Health, were compiled and analyzed and corroborated with the data published in the online bulletins and the interactive database of the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO). Population statistics were obtained from the National Statistics and Census Institutes of each country.

Results: During the study period, 1,118,464 cases of dengue were notified. There were 32,431 serious cases reported, 888 people died. The lethality per case of dengue was on average 0.08%. The four dengue serotypes circulated during the decade analyzed.

Discussion: Clinical and epidemiological information indicates high incidence rates, which have fluctuated in recent years, with significant co-circulation of several serotypes at the same time.

Conclusions: Notorious surveillance data collection differences were identified between countries, determining a heterologous epidemiological pattern.