Dengue fever is a painful, debilitating mosquito borne disease caused by any one of four closely related dengue viruses. These viruses are related to the viruses that cause West Nile infection and yellow fever.
An estimated 400 million dengue infections occur worldwide each year, with about 96 million resulting in illness. Most cases occur in tropical areas of the world, with the greatest risk occurring in the Indian sub continent, Southeast Asia, Southern China, Taiwan, the Pacific Islands, the Caribbean (except Cuba and the Cayman Islands), Mexico, Africa, Central and South America (except Chile, Paraguay, Argentina)
Dengue fever is transmitted by the bite of an Aedes mosquito infected with a dengue virus. Its peak biting periods are early morning and before dusk. The mosquito becomes infected when it bites a person with dengue virus in their blood. It cant spread directly from one person to another person.
Symptoms of Dengue fever usually begin four to six days after infection and last for up to 10 days, and may include sudden high fever, severe headaches, pain behind the eyes, severe joint and muscle pain, fatigue, nausea, vomiting, skin rash which appear two to five days after the onset of fever,mild bleeding such as nose bleeding, bleeding gums or easy bruising.
Sometimes symptoms are mild and can be mistaken for those of flu or another viral infection. Younger children and person who have never had the infection before tend to have have milder cases than older children and adults. However, serious problems can develop. These include dengue hemorrhagic fever, a rare complication characterized by high fever, damage of lymph and blood vessels, bleeding from the nose and gums, enlargement of the liver, and failure of the circulatory system. The symptoms may progress to massive bleeding, shock and death. This is called dengue shock syndrome (DSS).
People with weakened immune systems as well as those with a second or subsequent dengue infection are believed to be at greater risk for developing dengue hemorrhagic fever.
Doctors can diagnose dengue infection with a blood test to check for the virus or antibodies to it.
There is no specific medicine to treat dengue infection, If you think you may have dengue fever, you should use pain relievers with acetaminophen and avoid medicines with aspirin, which could worsen bleeding, You should also rest, drink plenty of fluids and see your doctor. If you start to feel worse in the first 24 hours after your fever goes down, you should get to a hospital immediately to be checked for complications.
The best way to prevent the disease is to prevent bites by infected mosquitoes, particularly if you are living in or travelling to a tropical area. This involves protecting yourself and making efforts to keepk the mosquito population down.
To protect yourself
Use mosquito repellents, even indoors
When outdoors, wear long sleeved shirts and long pants tucked into socks
When indoors, use air conditioning if available
Make sure window and door screens are secure and free of holes. If sleeping areas are not screened or air conditioned, use mosquito nets
If you have symptoms of dengue, speak to your doctor
To reduce the mosquito population, destroy the mosquito breeding grounds and spray insecticide in the affected areas. These include old tires, cans. or flower pots that collect rain. Regularly change the water in outdoor bird baths and pet's water dishes.
If someone in your home gets dengue fever, be especially vigilant about efforts to protect yourself and other family members from mosquitoes. Mosquitoes that bite the infected family member could spread the infection to others in your home.
An estimated 400 million dengue infections occur worldwide each year, with about 96 million resulting in illness. Most cases occur in tropical areas of the world, with the greatest risk occurring in the Indian sub continent, Southeast Asia, Southern China, Taiwan, the Pacific Islands, the Caribbean (except Cuba and the Cayman Islands), Mexico, Africa, Central and South America (except Chile, Paraguay, Argentina)
Dengue fever is transmitted by the bite of an Aedes mosquito infected with a dengue virus. Its peak biting periods are early morning and before dusk. The mosquito becomes infected when it bites a person with dengue virus in their blood. It cant spread directly from one person to another person.
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| Transmission of Dengue virus |
Sometimes symptoms are mild and can be mistaken for those of flu or another viral infection. Younger children and person who have never had the infection before tend to have have milder cases than older children and adults. However, serious problems can develop. These include dengue hemorrhagic fever, a rare complication characterized by high fever, damage of lymph and blood vessels, bleeding from the nose and gums, enlargement of the liver, and failure of the circulatory system. The symptoms may progress to massive bleeding, shock and death. This is called dengue shock syndrome (DSS).
People with weakened immune systems as well as those with a second or subsequent dengue infection are believed to be at greater risk for developing dengue hemorrhagic fever.
Doctors can diagnose dengue infection with a blood test to check for the virus or antibodies to it.
There is no specific medicine to treat dengue infection, If you think you may have dengue fever, you should use pain relievers with acetaminophen and avoid medicines with aspirin, which could worsen bleeding, You should also rest, drink plenty of fluids and see your doctor. If you start to feel worse in the first 24 hours after your fever goes down, you should get to a hospital immediately to be checked for complications.
The best way to prevent the disease is to prevent bites by infected mosquitoes, particularly if you are living in or travelling to a tropical area. This involves protecting yourself and making efforts to keepk the mosquito population down.
To protect yourself
Use mosquito repellents, even indoors
When outdoors, wear long sleeved shirts and long pants tucked into socks
When indoors, use air conditioning if available
Make sure window and door screens are secure and free of holes. If sleeping areas are not screened or air conditioned, use mosquito nets
If you have symptoms of dengue, speak to your doctor
To reduce the mosquito population, destroy the mosquito breeding grounds and spray insecticide in the affected areas. These include old tires, cans. or flower pots that collect rain. Regularly change the water in outdoor bird baths and pet's water dishes.
If someone in your home gets dengue fever, be especially vigilant about efforts to protect yourself and other family members from mosquitoes. Mosquitoes that bite the infected family member could spread the infection to others in your home.
