by Marzio Bartoloni
A new circular almost a month after the first one released by the Prevention directorate of the Ministry of Health
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Almost a month after the first circular on Dengue from the Prevention Directorate of the Ministry of Health – which raised the alert in ports and airports in Italy – a second circular is arriving in the early days of next week. After the first one which provided for the disinfestation of aircraft and ships, including cruise ships arriving from countries at risk, the new circular should provide for the use of rapid tests to be carried out on a random basis on passengers arriving from risk areas. We should start with a sample airport: the hypothesis is to start from the international one of Fiumicino.
More checks, disinfestations and testing experiments
The objective of the new circular is to tighten controls in ports and airports by Usmaf-Sasn (Maritime, Air and Border Health Offices) personnel to intensify mosquito hunting (Aedes aegypti) and prevent the vector of Dengue fever from enter Italy. Particular attention therefore, as mentioned, to an increase in disinfestations of aircraft and ships, including cruise ships. Also underway is the trial of a rapid test at the airport for those arriving from risk areas: the test should be carried out on a random basis and will be done on a voluntary basis. In 2023, 362 cases of Dengue were recorded in Italy, eighty-two of which were indigenous.
The Ministry of Health: No alarms in Italy, but prevention
The line of the general directorate for prevention of the Ministry of Health, led by Francesco Vaia, is not, however, to raise alarms but to prevent and therefore not be caught unprepared if cases increase. «In 2024, 48 confirmed cases of Dengue have been identified in the national territory, as of 21 February 2024, all imported. In light of the overview illustrated, I can only reiterate that the situation in Italy today is not alarming”, confirmed the Minister of Health Orazio Schillaci himself, responding in the Senate on 22 February to a question on the topic of Dengue.
Dengue runs in South America: from Guatemala to Brazil
Dengue is spreading in South America and is also alarming international health authorities who fear that it could become endemic in other latitudes, including Italy. Just in recent days the Guatemalan government has decreed a state of epidemiological alert due to the increase in dengue fever infections. The aim of the measure is to provide a faster administrative response to the transmission of the virus in the country where there are already 7 thousand cases and three deaths. While the most important and populous state in Brazil, Sao Paulo, has declared an emergency situation for Dengue with 311 cases per 100 thousand inhabitants. “We are in an epidemic, according to what the WHO determines regarding the number of confirmed cases,” explained Regiane de Paula, coordinator of Disease Control for the State of São Paulo. Peru has also declared a state of emergency in several areas of the country and numerous outbreaks have also been recorded in Argentina.
Marzio Bartoloni
deputy head of service
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