Virus strain mutation: Sri Lanka dengue fever outbreak sees over a thousand new cases in a single day.

On the 23rd, Sri Lankan media reported that, as of that day, the country’s dengue fever cases this year had reached 47,530, including 29 deaths. Of these, on the 21st, the number of newly added cases in a single day exceeded 1,000, reaching 1,069.

Kapila Kannangara, Acting Director of Sri Lanka’s National Dengue Control Center, said on the 22nd that the recent high incidence of dengue infections has led to a significant increase in the number of people going to hospitals, placing enormous pressure on the medical system.

Previously, Hansaka Wijemuni, Deputy Minister of Health, said that one of the reasons for the rapid rise in dengue case numbers in recent days is that the virus strains have mutated. He said that, compared with the strains detected in past dengue outbreaks in the country, the currently circulating strains have stronger transmissibility.

In June, Sri Lanka has carried out dengue prevention campaigns nationwide several times, aiming to carry out mosquito control and killing in places with higher risks of dengue infection. Health authorities urged the public to actively clean up stagnant water inside and around their homes to prevent mosquitoes from breeding. (Xinhua)