Is dengue worse than usual in Puttalam?

Yes. Dengue in Puttalam is seven times its usual for these weeks.

121 cases a week, against a usual 17.

0100200usual range2026JanAprJulOctWeek 18 of 2026: 12, as printedWeek 24 of 2026: 29, as printed

Week 18: the Ministry of Health's two reports disagree (12 here, from its Epidemiology Unit; 25 in its National Dengue Control Unit's weekly update). Shown as printed.

Week 24: the Ministry of Health's two reports disagree (29 here, from its Epidemiology Unit; 83 in its National Dengue Control Unit's weekly update). Shown as printed.

Read from these four weekly reports by Epidemiology Unit, Ministry of Health, Sri Lanka:

  • 20–26 Jul 2026 (Vol 53 No 31)
  • 26 Jul–2 Aug 2026 (Vol 53 No 32)
  • 3–9 Aug 2026 (Vol 53 No 33)
  • 10–16 Aug 2026 (Vol 53 No 34)
The 8 reports behind "usual"
  • 20–26 Jul 2024 (Vol 51 No 31)
  • 27 Jul–2 Aug 2024 (Vol 51 No 32)
  • 3–9 Aug 2024 (Vol 51 No 33)
  • 10–16 Aug 2024 (Vol 51 No 34)
  • 19–25 Jul 2025 (Vol 52 No 31)
  • 26 Jul–1 Aug 2025 (Vol 52 No 32)
  • 2–8 Aug 2025 (Vol 52 No 33)
  • 9–15 Aug 2025 (Vol 52 No 34)

The publisher's own list of its weekly reports

How this is worked out. The last four weeks against the same four weeks of the two years before, for Puttalam alone. What "usual" means.

When does dengue usually peak in Puttalam?

Usually around December and January: it peaked then in 14 of the last 18 years.

2007: peaked in week 512008: peaked in week 92009: peaked in week 272010: peaked in week 62011: peaked in week 522013: peaked in week 42014: peaked in week 472015: peaked in week 42016: peaked in week 82017: peaked in week 312018: peaked in week 12019: peaked in week 482020: peaked in week 522021: peaked in week 22022: peaked in week 522023: peaked in week 22024: peaked in week 22025: peaked in week 1JFMAMJJASOND

One year's peak2025Now and the next ten weeks

From 18 years of weekly reports, 2007 to 2025: each dot is the month that year's dengue peaked in Puttalam.

How does Puttalam compare with the rest of Sri Lanka?

Puttalam is 4th of the 21 districts with enough cases to compare, each against its own usual.

usual⅛×8×32×country 4.7×Anuradhapura: 6.0×Badulla: 7.6×Batticaloa: 3.0×Colombo: 4.0×Galle: 5.3×Gampaha: 6.3×Hambantota: 6.7×Jaffna: 2.5×Kalmunai: 6.5×Kalutara: 7.8×Kandy: 3.5×Kegalle: 5.3×Kurunegala: 3.8×Matale: 2.8×Matara: 7.2×Monaragala: 3.8×Nuwara Eliya: 6.3×Polonnaruwa: 5.0×Puttalam: 7.0×Ratnapura: 2.6×Trincomalee: 2.1×Puttalam

Across Sri Lanka as a whole, dengue is at 4.7× its usual; in Puttalam it is 7.0×.

What is dengue?

An infection caused by the dengue virus, carried by mosquitoes. Most people have mild or no illness, but it can become severe.

Signs
High fever, bad headache, pain behind the eyes, aching muscles and joints, feeling sick, vomiting, swollen glands and rash. Usually lasts two to seven days.
How it spreads
Through the bite of an infected Aedes mosquito, which bites mainly in the daytime. Rarely, through blood transfusions, organ donation, or from mother to baby.
How to protect yourself
Cover up, use nets, window screens and repellent. Empty, clean and cover anything holding water weekly. A vaccine is licensed in some countries for children aged 6 to 16 in high-risk areas.
Get medical help
Get help immediately, often just after the fever drops, for bad stomach pain, repeated vomiting, fast breathing, bleeding gums or nose, blood in vomit or poo, or cold pale skin. Use paracetamol, not ibuprofen or aspirin.

In Dooram's words, from the World Health Organization. Source: WHO fact sheet: Dengue and severe dengue, read 8 October 2026. General information, not medical advice.

Dengue in every country Dooram reads ›

A reported case means someone reached a clinic and a form was filed, so these count reports, not everyone who was ill.

Sources. Epidemiology Unit, Ministry of Health, Sri Lanka, weekly report. District maps: Survey Department of Sri Lanka, published as a Common Operational Dataset by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.