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In order to warn the health authorities in our region about the economic damages that a hemorrhagic dengue epidemic may cause, it was decided to study and publish the estimated cost of the Cuban epidemic in 1981, during which 344,203 diseased were reported, 10312 severe cases and 158 deceased. Economic costs include hospitalization expenses, assistance in emergency units, social security, expenses in out-patient treatment, goods not produced and expenses in the anti-vector campaign. Probably, this epidemic which could be controlled in about 4 months, has been the one causing most economic damages to date.

Dengue haemorrhagic fever/dengue shock syndrome (DHF/DSS) is one of the principal causes of hospitalization and death among children in several south-east Asian countries. Also, in the Region of the Americas, there has been an increase in the frequency of dengue fever epidemics and in the number of cases of DHF/DSS. In 1981 an epidemic of dengue haemorrhagic fever occurred in Cuba and this suggests that there is a high risk that such epidemics could recur in the region. The article summarizes the main clinical, virological, and epidemiological data obtained during the outbreak, some of which are reported for the first time.