Climate Change and Dengue Fever: Vulnerability and Potential Adaptation Responses in Urban Settings of Bangladesh

Abstract

The geographical location and geo-morphological conditions of Bangladesh have made the country highly vulnerable to climate change. Climate change impacts, including those on health, threaten to become a significant economic burden on the country, and hinder its development in the medium to long term. Floods, tropical cyclones, storm surge and droughts significantly impact on health directly and indirectly. Of these health impacts, vector-borne diseases, and in particular, dengue fever, pose a serious public health risk due to a lack of effective treatment or proven vaccine. Dengue infection can cause a spectrum of illness ranging from mild, undifferentiated fever to high fever, severe headache, retro-orbital pain, arthralgia and rash, and could lead to a deadly complication: dengue haemorrhagic fever (DHF). In Bangladesh, there are guidelines for clinical management for dengue fever; however, a gap exists in prevention strategy in the national policy related to climate change adaptation. There is an urgent need to develop a risk management plan for managing vector-borne diseases focussing on dengue fever as a priority for the public health sector. This study aims to examine the climate factors impacting on Bangladesh’s vulnerability to dengue fever, including identifying the vulnerable populations and vulnerable areas within the city. It also explores views and understanding of relevant stakeholders and communities regarding climate change and dengue fever and current dengue fever management issues, in order to develop climate change adaptation strategies for the prevention and management of dengue fever.