EAGLE PASS, Texas — Cases of Dengue fever are rising along the Texas-Mexico border with rates in the Lone Star State reaching levels not seen in more than two decades. In Mexico, hospitalizations and deaths from complications of the virus are also on the rise.
Despite the proximity of border cities in Mexico and Texas, the rates of contagion with the Dengue virus differ significantly. In Mexico, rates of infection and deaths from the mosquito-borne virus are significantly higher.
In Texas, the first locally acquired case of Dengue fever this year did not appear until November. The Cameron County resident living just miles from the Mexican border contracted the disease in Brownsville, Texas, according to the Texas Department of State Health Services (TDSHS). In a recent press release, TDSHS data shows that as of November 25, there have been 106 travel-associated dengue cases, including one death reported in Texas. This is the highest annual case count in Texas since 2002.
The agency warned residents to take precautions to protect against mosquito bites in Texas and while traveling internationally to countries where dengue is endemic.
In Mexican border states across from Texas, the virus is having a more dire impact for some surprising reasons. This year alone, the mosquito-borne virus has claimed the lives of 33 citizens in the Mexican border state of Tamaulipas, just across the Rio Grande from Brownsville, McAllen, and Laredo, according to a recent report released by state officials. A total of 340 infections have been recorded in Matamoros, the sister city of Brownsville, in 2024. In Reynosa, the city bordering the Rio Grande from McAllen, 163 residents tested positive for Dengue this year.
According to a report in La Rancherita del Aire News, 33 residents of the Mexican border state of Coahuila, across the Rio Grande from Eagle Pass and Del Rio, Texas, have died because of Dengue complications this year. Across the border from Eagle Pass, in Piedras Negras, one of the busiest migrant border crossing areas in the state, health authorities have announced that 50 percent of all testing for Dengue fever shows a positive result.
In Piedras Negras, health officials are struggling to treat those with the most severe complications of Dengue due to a shortage of blood and plasma required to treat the virus properly. In 2024, nearly 5,000 cases of Dengue fever were identified throughout Coahuila, with most discovered in the border state’s capital of Saltillo.
According to the Texas Department of State Health Services, the Dengue virus is transmitted by infected mosquitoes, and about 25 percent of infected individuals will become symptomatic. After about three to 14 days, infected people may develop fever, nausea, vomiting, rash, muscle aches, joint pain, bone pain, pain behind the eyes, and headaches. Most people recover completely within two weeks. However, about one in 20 symptomatic people develop a severe infection that can be fatal if untreated.
According to one scientific report, the contrast in infection rates between border residents along both sides of the Rio Grande can be chalked up to the difference in lifestyle. In 1999, the Centers for Disease Control worked with health authorities on both sides of the border to document the infection disparity between Nuevo Laredo in Mexico and Laredo, Texas. The two cities, separated by a thin sliver of the Rio Grande, experienced vastly different rates of infection, as is seen today.
Participating entities in the study noted more positive infections in Nuevo Laredo residents despite a larger vector (Aedes aegypti Mosquito) in Laredo. The report’s conclusion showed that the wide-scale use of air conditioning in Laredo significantly reduced infections.
The study concluded that 82 percent of homes in Laredo had air-conditioning compared to 24% in Nuevo Laredo. In Laredo, more homes had intact screens, and the separation between houses was greater. The study noted fewer residents per home in Laredo than in the Mexican border city of Nuevo Laredo. Ultimately, scientists discovered that climate played less of a role in the infection rate than pure economics. Residents in Mexico spent more time outdoors, and their homes provided less protection from the vector.
Randy Clark is a 32-year veteran of the United States Border Patrol. Prior to his retirement, he served as the Division Chief for Law Enforcement Operations, directing operations for nine Border Patrol Stations within the Del Rio, Texas, Sector. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @RandyClarkBBTX.
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