Re-emergence of dengue in Argentina: Historical development and future challenges

Abstract

After 82 years of the absence of dengue in Argentina, a dengue outbreak occurred in the northern provinces of the country in 1998. Aedes aegypti, the vector mosquito, was eradicated in the 1960s, mainly due to the use of residual insecticides at an enormous cost of resources and through a vertical health programme. Since then, the country has gradually become reinfested due to the deterioration of the surveillance system and vector control programmes. At present, DENV-1 to 3 have been found in circulation and 3162 cases of dengue fever (DF) have been reported in the country. However, as autochthonous cases have been recorded during this epidemic only, the disease is still not considered endemic in the country, although there is a regular occurrence of outbreaks in neighbouring countries. The control strategies currently being used are the same ones as used in the past century although socioeconomic and demographic conditions have greatly changed. Consequently, alternative methods are proposed as potential tools to establish new ways of controlling the vector, which is the only way of preventing new outbreaks in the region.