by Sarmento Queiroga A, Mendes Barbosa DA, Campos TdL, Vargas Schwarzbold A, Siqueira AM, Steiner Salvato R, Luz Wallau G. IJID Regions 2025, 14:100577. doi: 10.1016/j.ijregi.2025.100577
Summary: About 6.5 million of the 14 million cases of dengue fever reported in 2024 were reported in Brazil. Lethality in severe cases was particularly high in Rio Grande do Sul, a historically less affected state. Rio Grande do Sul has the highest proportion of elderly individuals of all Brazilian states; the authors of this report propose that this fact, along with the immunologically naive population, low levels of awareness of how to detect and treat severe dengue, and difficulties in managing elderly patients, may have contributed to the higher lethality of severe dengue in the region. An integrated approach to raising awareness, reducing mosquito populations, and reducing dengue burden in the region, particularly in the elderly population, is urgently needed.
