The current situation of arboviruses was once again the focus of this week's meeting between the First Secretary of the Party Central Committee and President of the Republic, Miguel Díaz-Canel Bermúdez, and experts and scientists on health issues, at which a 2.4% decrease in cases of nonspecific febrile syndrome was reported at the national level, although with a slowdown compared to last week.
Despite the overall reduction in reports, there has been an increase in seven provinces: Las Tunas, Holguín, Pinar del Río, Mayabeque, Granma, Pinar del Río, and Sancti Spíritus, mainly in the first three, reported Dr. Carilda Peña García, Deputy Minister of Public Health.
Moderated by the head of the sector, Dr. José Angel Portal Miranda, at another point in the meeting, Dr. Raúl Guinovart Díaz, an expert in mathematics and director of Science and Technology at the University of Havana, emphasized that, according to the prediction analysis by region and country, the behavior of arboviruses in the coming weeks will be unfavorable.
In a side conversation with the press, Guinovart Díaz explained that, in addition to the vector control actions being carried out, this time of year, with a decrease in temperatures, is conducive to reducing the infestation of Aedes aegypti.
However, he warned that the mosquito will now seek refuge in warmer places, especially inside homes, so it is vital that the population reinforce preventive measures within their homes, especially the elimination of possible breeding sites.
Previously, Dr. Carilda Peña García reported that dengue transmission remains at the same level as the previous week. It is present in 14 provinces, 43 municipalities, and 51 health areas.
Regarding Chikungunya, she explained that in the last three weeks there has been a decrease, reaching a 25.9% drop at the end of the period, when 5,716 new fever cases were reported as suspected, 5,409 were confirmed, and 307 were confirmed.
To date, there have been 38,342 cases of Chikungunya, of which 37,101 are suspected and 1,241 are confirmed. They have been reported in all 15 territories of the country and are concentrated in 113 municipalities and 199 health areas. With regard to Oropouche, she noted that no cases were reported in the last week; the last case was confirmed on September 26.
Regarding the situation of acute respiratory infections (ARI), the Deputy Minister of Health reported that there has been a decrease over the last five weeks.
In the week just ended, she said, there has also been a 2.4% decrease compared to the previous week, with fewer than 893 medical visits for this cause. However, she clarified that a period of increase in ARIs is expected to begin.
"This endemic corridor is not in an epidemic zone," she assured, "but there is a group of viruses circulating and cases that should keep us on alert."
The specialist provided new data on COVID-19 surveillance. She reported that only 13 cases were diagnosed in October. During the year, 3,407 tests for COVID-19 have been carried out, 1,896 PCR tests and 1,511 antigen tests. Surveillance has been maintained, the resources for this are available, and there has been no variation in the Omicron strain and the sub-variants that have been circulating.
Commenting on the data presented by the Minsap authorities, Díaz-Canel insisted on the need to continue providing the population with all the information, to do so with complete transparency and comprehensiveness, and to do so on a daily basis.
Regarding the use of new technologies for vector control, with an emphasis on the Aedes aegypti mosquito, IPK specialists elaborated on techniques such as the sterile insect technique, through irradiation; genetic modification (transgenics); and the use of bacteria that infect the mosquito, all with the aim of reducing or eliminating its population.
These techniques are validated and promoted by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and have been developed significantly in more than 20 countries, with Brazil leading the way in Latin America and the Caribbean.
