Dengue: What is the mosquito-borne disease that Sri Lanka uses drones to combat?

Sri Lankan health authorities have reported an increase in dengue infections The storm that hit the island Last December, it turned into a new breeding ground for mosquitoes by scattering debris.

The government has tasked the army with using drones to search homes, schools and construction sites, and has deployed police to go to people’s homes and conduct body searches.

So far this month, nearly 11,000 mosquito breeding sites have been cleared and more than 4,000 sites have been fined for harboring those sites.

While infections have been reported across the country, they tend to be concentrated in urban areas, such as the capital, Colombo.

Hospitals have extended beds and working hours to deal with the outbreak and public health workers have been “stretched to their limits”, Kananagara, from the National Dengue Control Unit, told Reuters news agency.

“The number of patients is high and the severity of the cases is high,” the director said, noting that 75% of the cases are related to the more virulent dengue strain.

Limited capacity has led doctors to advise patients with mild symptoms to rest and recover at home.

Officials are also considering a dengue vaccine, but health experts have pointed out that it would be difficult to develop such a vaccine given the four different strains of the virus.