Dengue is the most rapidly spreading mosquito-borne viral disease in the world. In the last 50 years, incidence has increased 30-fold with increasing geographic expansion to new countries and, in the present decade, from urban to rural settings ….
Dengue: transmitted between humans in the Americas by our friends(?) Aedes aegypti.
An estimated 50 million dengue infections occur annually, and approximately 2.5 billion people live in dengue endemic countries.
The affected countries include México and almost all other countries in the Tropics. Fatality rates from extreme Dengue Virus infections (DHF & DSS) have ranged from 1%-3.5% in Dengue endemic areas. Yucatán and along the Gulf coast of Mexico are Dengue endemic areas (areas maintaining Dengue Virus). . . .
Dengue Virus infections come in several forms:
- most people get mild infections with few symptoms and possibly a short duration low fever;
- others get some combination of intense fever, pain behind the eyes, body rash, extreme pain in their bones and joints, and mild nose bleeds; (these two are called “Dengue Virus Infections” or “Dengue Fever”)
- a few (3% – 5%) get the potentially fatal symptoms of “Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever” (DHF) of Dengue Shock Syndrome (DSS), where DHF causes bleeding from the eyes, gums, nose, under the skin, or into the GI tract, vomiting, and black stools.
. . . Our local Dengue experts add the following warning signs that are unique to Dengue infections:
- pain behind the eyes (retro-orbital pain),
- pain in the bones and joints (hence Dengue’s other name: “Break-Bone Fever”), and
- Mild hemorrhagic manifestations like petechiae (small dots of bleeding under the skin) and mucosal membrane bleeding (e.g. nose and gums) may be seen.
CRITERIA FOR SEVERE DENGUE SYMPTOMS
Severe plasma leakage leading to:
• Shock (DSS)
• Fluid accumulation with respiratory distress
• Severe bleeding as evaluated by clinician
• Severe organ involvement
• Liver: AST or ALT =1000
• CNS: Impaired consciousness
• Heart and other organs
…an average Dengue episode represented 14.8 lost days for ambulatory patients and 18.9 days for hospitalized patients.
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DENGUE IN INTERNATIONAL TRAVEL
Travelers play an essential role in the global epidemiology of dengue infections, . . . (cont)
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The full article can be read at: (or click on Header item)
Dengue Fever Information: What to Do?
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© Steven M. Fry
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