Dengue: Almost 40% of Brazilians have had the disease at some point in their lives
More than 6.5 million Brazilians had dengue fever in 2024 alone. This is the highest number in the Ministry of Health's 20-year historical series and is almost equivalent to the population of Maranhão. Although alarming, this year's figures do not reflect the entire endemic scenario of the disease.
According to a survey released by the Takeda laboratory — responsible for developing the dengue vaccine — 39% of the population has had the disease during their lifetime. The data was released days before National Dengue Combat Day, established by law to be held on the last Saturday of November.
The survey shows that 91% of the population considers the disease to be “serious”. Furthermore, 85% of people know someone who has contracted the disease, and almost one in four people know someone who has died from it. In 2024, more than seven thousand people died from dengue, including confirmed deaths and those still under investigation by the ministry.
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Regarding the dengue vaccine, 88% say that the vaccine is an effective way to prevent the disease, and 76% consider it important that it is available free of charge. The SUS (Unified Health System) makes the vaccine available to children and adolescents aged 10 to 14.
São Paulo is the federation unit with the most deaths recorded in 2024, with 1,920, followed by Minas Gerais (1,099), Paraná (732), Distrito Federal (440) and Goiás (408). Together, the four states and the DF accumulate 78% of the total deaths.
The Federal District is the federation unit with the highest incidence rate of probable cases, with 9,850.9 cases per 100,000 inhabitants. Minas Gerais, Paraná, São Paulo and Goiás appear next, accounting for 77% of the absolute number of cases.
The age group with the highest number of dengue cases is 20 to 29 years old, with 1.2 million cases, which represents almost one in every five cases. In terms of gender, women are the majority to contract the disease (55%).