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Bogotá D.C., April 10, 2022. Colombia, due to its geographical and eco-epidemiological characteristics, meets all the conditions for having mosquitoes that transmit Dengue, Chikungunya and Zika circulating in the country. For this reason, during Holy Week, the public must follow the recommendations to prevent them.

Iván Cárdenas, interim deputy director of Communicable Diseases of the Ministry of Health and Social Protection, pointed out that "it must be taken into account that the form of transmission of Dengue, Chikungunya and Zika occurs when the Aedes aegypti mosquito, infected with any of these viruses, feeds on the blood of a healthy person and thus transmits any of these diseases to them."

He also indicated that mosquitoes breed close to where they obtain food. "In the specific case of the female Aedes aegypti, they prefer human blood and after feeding they look for places with shade and clear or clean stagnant water such as pools, vases, pots, forgotten containers in patios, among others and they lay their eggs in the walls of these containers.

This is the importance of prevention, taking into account that, this week, people and their families travel to endemic municipalities.

Recommendations to prevent these diseases

·         Do not leave standing water in pots after watering the plants.

·         Keep the containers in which you store water completely covered.

·         If you store water in pools, bins or other large containers, wash them and brush their walls every 8 days, keeping them covered if possible.

·         If you use vases, wash them and change the water at least every 6 days or put chlorine drops in them.

·         Keep the patio free of objects that can store water, properly dispose of tires, scrap metal, clean rainwater gutters, puddles, clean water tanks, lids, and others.

·         Collect rubbish and solid waste in vacant lots, keep the yard clean.

·         Eliminate all mosquito breeding sites inside and outside your home, such as pots, vases, and others.

·         Participate in community events to collect waste with participation promoted by local authorities.

Likewise, to avoid mosquito bites, people must follow the following measures:

·         Wear clothing that covers as much skin as possible.

·         Administer mosquito repellants to exposed skin, following directions for use.

·         Use mosquito nets or awnings to protect children, the elderly and sick, or any other person who rests during the day.

·         In the house, put screens, fabrics to cover walls and doors and any area where the mosquito can enter.

In case of getting dengue, zika or chikungunya, the person must take into account the following precautions:

·         Do not self-medicate.

·         Drink plenty of fluids.

·         Go immediately to health institutions to receive care.

·         If you are in a health institution and have been diagnosed with the virus, you must be isolated and remain with a mosquito net. This same measure should be extended to people who are in their homes and who have the virus.

Behavior of arboviruses

According to the latest epidemiological bulletin of the National Institute of Health, as of March 26, 2022, 20 cases of chikungunya have been registered in 9 territorial offices of the country, 60 cases of Zika in 18 territorial offices and 11,967 cases of dengue in 37 territorial offices.

In the case of dengue, it has been distributed to 583 municipalities, with greater frequency in Barranquilla (1,143 cases), Cali (803 cases), Cartagena (590 cases), Yopal (515 cases), Cúcuta (479 cases), Soledad (379 cases) and Riohacha (342).

These three diseases present a behavior within what is expected, but there is currently a dengue outbreak in: Amazonas, Atlántico, Barranquilla, Bolívar, Cartagena, Casanare, La Guajira, San Andres, Providencia and Santa Catalina and Norte de Santander.