Also called break-bone fever, dengue fever is a painful flu-like illness. Dengue fever is caused by a family of viruses and spread through Aedes mosquitoes. It is a severe mosquito-borne infection that usually starts with basic symptoms like fever, headache, and body pain. The disease can only be spread when bitten by the Aedes mosquito, and never directly from one person to another. Anyone can be affected by the dengue disease, but people with compromised immune systems tend to be more victimized by the disease.
How Serious Is The Dengue Fever Disease?
Most patients recover from the dengue disease after two to seven days. Whereas, some patients develop a dengue hemorrhagic fever or dengue shock syndrome; a more severe form of the illness. Dengue hemorrhagic fever and dengue shock syndrome may lead to organ damage, low blood pressure, dehydration, low platelets, severe bleeding, or even death.
SYMPTOMS
A person who has never been exposed to the virus previously usually display the signs and symptoms about 3 to 15 days after being bitten by the mosquito. According to the severity of the disease, the symptoms may vary.
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MILD DENGUE FEVER
Symptoms of mild dengue fever include:
- High fever
- Severe headache
- Pain behind the eyes
- Skin rash
- Muscle and joints pain
- Vomiting
- Nausea
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DENGUE HEMORRHAGIC FEVER
The symptoms seem mild in the beginning, but they may get worsen after a few days. Therefore,
symptoms of dengue hemorrhagic fever are:- Fast breathing
- Clammy skin
- Mucosal bleeding (mouth and gums)
- Abdominal pain
- Rapid loss in platelets
- Vomiting
- Internal bleeding – black vomit or feces
- Restlessness
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DENGUE SHOCK SYNDROME
Dengue Shock Syndrome is a more severe form of dengue disease. Symptoms include:
- Severe abdominal pain
- Rapid drop in blood pressure level
- Regular vomiting
- Heavy bleeding
PREVENTION
There is no vaccine that can protect a person against dengue fever disease. The only way to prevent the disease is to take some necessary precautions such as:
- Clothing
- Mosquito Repellents
- Mosquito Nets
- Stagnant Water
Wear full-length pants and long-sleeved shirts to minimize the amount of skin exposed. Tuck in shirts, wear hats and shoes with boots instead of sandals which might help reduce the risk.
Apply mosquito repellents even indoors for optimum protection against the disease. Repellents with at least 10 percent diethyltoluamide (DEEL) can help individuals to not get affected by the mosquito bite.
Bed nets can be sufficient prevention to the disease, bit the mosquito can bite through the net. Therefore, using mosquito nets with insecticides are more effective because the insecticide-treated in the nets kill the mosquitos trying to infect a person. Also, insecticide-treated nets can also repel mosquitos and insects from entering the place.
The Aedes mosquito usually breeds in stagnant water. Removing stagnant water from home can help in preventing the disease.
If you detect any of the above symptoms, we recommend you conduct a test against the dengue disease from the Health Commission Recognized Awami Lab Gujrat.
