Dengue Fever – Symptoms, Causes, treatments

What is Dengue Fever?

Dengue fever is an infectious disease carried by mosquitoes and caused by any of four related dengue viruses.

Overview 

Dengue (DENG-gey) fever is a mosquito-borne disease that occurs in tropical and subtropical areas of the world. Mild dengue fever causes a high fever, rash, and muscle and joint pain. A severe form of dengue fever, also called dengue hemorrhagic fever, can cause severe bleeding, a sudden drop in blood pressure (shock) and death.

Millions of cases of dengue infection occur worldwide each year. Dengue fever is most common in Southeast Asia and the western Pacific islands, but the disease has been increasing rapidly in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Symptoms

Many people, especially children and teens, may experience no signs or symptoms during a mild case of dengue fever. When symptoms do occur, they usually begin four to seven days after you are bitten by an infected mosquito.

Dengue fever causes a high fever — 104 F degrees — and at least two of the following symptoms:

• Headache
• Muscle, bone and joint pain
• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Pain behind the eyes
• Swollen glands
• Rash

Most people recover within a week or so. In some cases, symptoms worsen and can become life-threatening. Blood vessels often become damaged and leaky. And the number of clot-forming cells (platelets) in your bloodstream drops. This can cause a severe form of dengue fever, called dengue hemorrhagic fever, severe dengue or dengue shock syndrome.

Signs and symptoms of dengue hemorrhagic fever or severe dengue — a life-threatening emergency — include:

• Severe abdominal pain
• Persistent vomiting
• Bleeding from your gums or nose
• Blood in your urine, stools or vomit
• Bleeding under the skin, which might look like bruising
• Difficult or rapid breathing
• Cold or clammy skin (shock)
• Fatigue
• Irritability or restlessness

Causes

Dengue fever is caused by any one of four types of dengue viruses spread by mosquitoes that thrive in and near human lodgings. When a mosquito bites a person infected with a dengue virus, the virus enters the mosquito. When the infected mosquito then bites another person, the virus enters that person’s bloodstream.

After you’ve recovered from dengue fever, you have immunity to the type of virus that infected you — but not to the other three dengue fever virus types. The risk of developing severe dengue fever, also known as dengue hemorrhagic fever, actually increases if you’re infected a second, third or fourth time.

Precaution / Prevention

• Stay in air-conditioned or well-screened housing.
• Wear long-sleeves and long pants to cover your arms and legs.
• Use mosquito nets while sleeping.
• Use mosquito repellent.
• Reduce mosquito habitat.
• Do not keep water pots in house
• Stay away from heavily populated residential areas, if possible.
• If you have symptoms of dengue, speak to your doctor.

Diagnosis

Diagnosing dengue fever can be difficult, because its signs and symptoms can be easily confused with those of other diseases — such as malaria, leptospirosis and typhoid fever. consult your doctor in case of such symptoms.

Treatment

No specific treatment for dengue fever exists. Your doctor may recommend that you drink plenty of fluids to avoid dehydration from vomiting and a high fever.

Acetaminophen / Paracetamol can alleviate pain and reduce fever. Avoid pain relievers that can increase bleeding complications — such as aspirin, ibuprofen and naproxen sodium

If you have severe dengue fever, you may need:

• Supportive care in a hospital
• Intravenous (IV) fluid and electrolyte replacement
• Blood pressure monitoring
• Transfusion to replace blood loss

Carica papaya leaf extract :

At this time, the only known cure for Dengue is papaya leaf, which is still not well known to doctors or the public. The juice or pulp made from this plant has been found to be quite effective not only in fighting the symptoms of dengue fever, but also in curing it.

Specialists from the Indian Institute of Forest Management have recently conducted a thorough study on five patients. The outcome was pretty amazing. Within 24 hours from drinking the juice made of papaya leaves, all the subjects reported a significant improvement of their overall health, reduced side effects and increased comfort. On top of all, they didn’tt experienced any side effects.

Complications

If severe, dengue fever can damage the lungs, liver or heart. Blood pressure can drop to dangerous levels, causing shock and, in some cases, death.

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