COVID-19 and dengue, co-epidemics in Ecuador and other countries in Latin America: Pushing strained health care systems over the edge

• Published in: Travel medicine and infectious disease Vol. 37; p. 101656
• Main Authors: Navarro, Juan-Carlos, Arrivillaga-Henríquez, Jazzmin, Salazar-Loor, José, Rodriguez-Morales, Alfonso J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Netherlands Elsevier Ltd 01-09-2020; Elsevier Limited
• Subjects: Betacoronavirus; COIVID19; Coronavirus Infections - epidemiology; Coronaviruses; COVID-19; Delivery of Health Care; Dengue; Dengue - epidemiology; Dengue fever; Disease transmission; Epidemics; Health Care Costs; Human diseases; Humans; Infectious diseases; Latin America; Latin America - epidemiology; Pandemic; Pandemics; Patients; Pneumonia, Viral - epidemiology; Public health; SARS-CoV-19; SARS-CoV-2; Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; Travel medicine; Travellers; Vector-borne diseases; Writing; Latin America; Ecuador; Europe; SARS-CoV-19; Pandemic; Travellers; COIVID19; Dengue; Latin America
• ISSN: 1477-8939; 1873-0442
• DOI: 10.1016/j.tmaid.2020.101656

Amazonia presents 11.3% of dengue and 1.82% of COVID-19, and Galapagos zero and four (0.25%) cases respectively. [...]the most significant public health problem occurs on the coast, with Guayaquil (officially Santiago de Guayaquil), capital of Guayas province, as the primary source of transmission and contagion. According to the estimates of the percentage of seriously ill patients who may require ICU bed intake (5% of the total cases), if a doubling of cases is initiated every seven days, and with each patient requiring about 21 days on average to recover, the region could be outnumbered in the number of beds in a few weeks at the start of the infection exponential stage. [...]the importance of developing rapid and reliable tests for SARS-CoV-2/Dengue in the immediate future.