Other names: Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever; Dengue Shock Syndrome

Dengue fever is spread by the female Aedes mosquito that has been infected with dengue fever virus, of which there are five strains. As many as 80% of people infected with dengue virus have no symptoms or mild fever whereas others develop more severe symptoms of dengue fever. For those who are symptomatic, the symptoms start 4 to 7 days after being bitten from an infected mosquito and involve high fevers, headache behind the eyes, nausea, vomiting, skin rash, muscle and joint pain. In a small number of patients, as the fever resolves, the clinical course proceeds to the potentially dangerous dengue hemorrhagic fever with bleeding, severe abdominal pain, vomiting that contains blood, respiratory distress and organ impairment. This is a critical stage of the illness and without medical care the complications can cause death. Treatment in the early stages of dengue fever is oral rehydration therapy and acetaminophen for fever or pain, aspirin and NSAID’s like ibuprofen should be avoided as they increase risk of bleeding. If symptoms progress to severe dengue fever then medical care is critical to reduce the mortality rate. Avoidance of mosquito bites is the best way to reduce dengue fever. This can be done wearing protective clothing, using mosquito netting and using effective insect repellents. Reducing the habitat for the mosquito is another essential part of dengue fever prevention.

Drugs used to treat Dengue Fever