Dengue (pronounced DENgee) 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.
Each year, an estimated 100 million cases of dengue fever occur worldwide. Most of these are in tropical areas of the world, with the greatest risk occurring in:
- The Indian subcontinent
- 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, and Argentina)
Most cases in the United States occur in people who
contracted the infection while traveling abroad. But the risk is
increasing for people living along the Texas-Mexico border and in other
parts of the southern United States. In 2009, an outbreak of dengue
fever was identified in Key West, Fla.
Dengue fever is transmitted by the bite of an Aedes mosquito infected with a dengue virus. The mosquito becomes infected when it bites a person with dengue virus in their blood. It can’t be spread directly from one person to another person.
Symptoms of Dengue Fever
Symptoms, which usually begin four to six days after infection and last for up to 10 days, may include
- Sudden, high fever
- Severe headaches
- Pain behind the eyes
- Severe joint and muscle pain
- Nausea
- Vomiting
- Skin rash, which appears three to four days after the onset of fever
- Mild bleeding (such a nose bleed, bleeding gums, or easy bruising)
Sometimes symptoms are mild and can be mistaken for those of the flu or another viral infection. Younger children and people who have never had the infection before tend to 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 to 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.Diagnosing Dengue Fever
Doctors can diagnose dengue infection with a blood
test to check for the virus or antibodies to it. If you become sick
after traveling to a tropical area, let your doctor know. This will
allow your doctor to evaluate the possibility that your symptoms were
caused by a dengue infection.
Treatment for Dengue Fever
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.
