Growth in air travel in Asia to blame for spread of dengue
The rise in air connectivity across Asia has brought many benefits to the region and beyond but there is also a downside.
Researchers say air travel in Asia is the main reason for an increase in cases of dengue fever in the past decade.
Chinese researchers found the spread of three dengue virus strains, DENV-1, -2, and -3, were due to the growth in air travel more than any other factor.
The study looked at maritime travel, migration, and socio-economic factors from 1956 to 2015.
Huaiyu Tian and Bing Xu, from Beijing Normal University, China looked at 2,202 genetic sequences of dengue viruses in 20 counties in the region.
"Future trends in global mobility could potentially accelerate the appearance and diffusion of DENV worldwide," they said.
"Prevention and control of dengue epidemics requires a better understanding of its mode of geographic dissemination, especially for countries in the tropics."
Air traffic hubs in countries such as Thailand and India help speed up the spread, they said and countries such as China and Indonesia, with fast growing aviation markets, diffuse the virus to other Asian countries.
The Dengue virus affects up to 390 million people worldwide each year and symptoms include mild fever, headaches and severe low blood pressure.
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Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
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