Dengue in Times of Covid-19: A Pre and Post Pandemic Evaluation in East Delhi Population

Background: Dengue is an endemic disease in tropical and sub-tropical regions across the globe with South-east Asian countries showing an increasing prevalence over the years.

Objective: To observe changes in the disease pattern of Dengue during pre and post pandemic periods.

Materials and Methods: A retrospective observational study was performed. The laboratory-based study retrieved data for the tests routinely performed for detection of Dengue infection and Covid-19 infection. The positivity rate was calculated for Dengue (2019-21) and for Covid (2020-21). The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on dengue incidence was studied.

Observations: It was observed that dengue infection peaked during the monsoon and post-monsoon period. The testing for dengue infection declined by 79.3% when the Covid-19 pandemic struck in 2020. The testing for dengue in 2021 showed an increase of 49.9% when compared to 2019 with a higher positivity rate of 36.4%.

Conclusion: In the wake of Covid-19 pandemic, as the healthcare system became focused on managing the emergency-like situation and routine diagnostic protocols thus, the control measures for vector borne diseases were disrupted. The surge of dengue cases in 2021 indicates that onset of Covid-19 created a smokescreen which gave rise to increased spread of dengue in the following year. Therefore, it is prudent to incorporate measures to ensure that the control and management of other diseases continues to run seamlessly even during emergence of future epidemics/pandemics.