Dengue, Oropouche fever, chikungunya: an epidemiological crisis has Cuba on edge

"By the end of the summer months, people in Cuba, especially in the western end of the island, were wondering what rare disease had them bedridden, with body aches and swelling, fevers as high as 40C, vomiting, diarrhea, headaches, and even skin blemishes. In Matanzas, the epicenter of the disaster, entire families reported infections, which then spread to every neighborhood, then to the entire province, almost encompassing the entire country."

"No one knew exactly what it was, and there were barely any reagents in the municipal laboratories that, at the beginning of the outbreak, could confirm what is known today: Cuba is experiencing a combined epidemiological crisis, with the simultaneous presence of dengue, Oropouche fever and chikungunya, which until now the authorities had tried to ignore. After several weeks of silence, officials came forward to deny rumors of illnesses unrelated to the island."

"No one can hide an epidemic or deaths, the minister stated. Meanwhile, the well-known Dr. Francisco Duran Garcia, national director of Epidemiology and a familiar face for Cubans due to his daily reports amid the coronavirus pandemic, declared on October 8 that there were neither 11 deaths as reported, nor were the hospitals overwhelmed with cases. The Cuban intellectual Alina Barbara Lopez had asserted on Facebook that authorities were manipulating the extremely serious situation in Matanzas, the city where she lives."

Cuba is experiencing a combined epidemiological crisis with simultaneous transmission of dengue, Oropouche fever, and chikungunya, concentrated in the western provinces and centered in Matanzas. Symptoms reported include high fevers, body aches, swelling, vomiting, diarrhea, headaches, and skin blemishes, affecting entire families and neighborhoods. Municipal laboratories initially lacked reagents to confirm infections. Health officials initially denied unusual deaths and minimized the scale, asserting the illnesses were neither new nor unknown. Prominent epidemiology officials publicly rejected claims of multiple deaths and overwhelmed hospitals, while citizens reported manipulation and suppression of information about arbovirus fatalities.

Read at english.elpais.com