Quito, March 9 : Ecuador has registered 2,958 dengue cases and two deaths this year, mainly in the coastal provinces of Guayas, El Oro and Manabi, the Public Health Ministry said. There has been an increase in the number of cases in recent weeks due to the floods in tropical provinces, said Francisco Perez, undersecretary of national health surveillance of the Health Ministry, at a virtual press conference. "However, this dengue outbreak is not any bigger than previous years. It's within expectations," Xinhua news agency quoted Perez as saying. Of the total cases reported as of March 4,125 patients showed "warning signs", and seven were in severe condition, he added. The Ministry is working with local officials to eliminate mosquito breeding sites through fumigation and other measures. Dengue is a viral infection transmitted to humans through the bite of infected mosquitoes. Severe dengue is a leading cause of serious illness and death in some Asian and Latin American countries, according to the World Health Organization. /IANS