Age, sex, and racial distribution
The data we collected indicate that number of reported cases of dengue disease declined in children but was more stable in adults during the review period. Similar age distributions were reported for both males and females and in the Malay and Indian racial groups, with the highest proportion of dengue disease cases occurred in people aged 10–29 years [12], [16]. The number of deaths due to dengue disease in children (0–14 years) declined markedly up to 2007 as did the CFR (from 1•3% to 0•17%), while the number in adults (aged ≥15 years) increased slightly and the CFR changed little [3], [9].
National data published by the WHO for the period 2000–2008 demonstrated that there was a predominance of males with dengue disease (55–62%). This relationship was confirmed by the proportion of males with dengue disease in all years being significantly greater FIGURE 1: Map of Malaysia.
Malaysia is a federation separated into two regions by the South China Sea. There are 11 states and two federal territories on Peninsular Malaysia and two states and one federal territory in East Malaysia. The Peninsular states are divided into districts. On Borneo, the Sabah and Sarawak districts are grouped into divisions.
doi:10.1371/journal.pntd.0003159.g001