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. 2008 Sep;116(9):A382–A388. doi: 10.1289/ehp.116-a382

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Dengue is transmitted by mosquitoes that have become perfectly adapted to the urban environment. Areas where there is poor sanitation and overcrowding (such as Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, above and below) are ripe for epidemics. According to the Brazilian Ministry of Health, Rio was the site of about half the dengue cases in an epidemic that swept this country in spring 2008.