Symptoms of dengue fever

A symptom is something the patient feels or reports, while a sign is something that other people, including the doctor detects. A headache may be an example of a symptom, while a rash may be an example of a sign.

The symptoms of dengue fever. Image created by Mikael Häggström.

As there are different severities of dengue fever, the symptoms can vary.

Mild dengue fever

Symptoms can appear up to seven days after the mosquito carrying the virus bites, and usually disappear after a week. This form of the disease hardly ever results in serious or fatal complications.

The symptoms of mild dengue fever are:

• Aching muscles and joints
• Body rash that can disappear and then reappear
• High fever
• Intense headache
• Pain behind the eyes
• Vomiting and feeling nauseous.

Dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF)

Symptoms during onset may be mild, but gradually worsen after a number of days. DHF can result in death if not treated in time. Mild dengue fever symptoms may occur in DHF, as well as the ones listed below:

• Bleeding from your mouth/gums
• Nosebleeds
• Clammy skin
• Considerably damaged lymph and blood vessels
• Internal bleeding, which can result in black vomit and feces (stools)
• Lower number of platelets in blood - these are the cells that help clot your blood
• Sensitive stomach
• Small blood spots under your skin
• Weak pulse.

Dengue shock syndrome

This is the worst form of dengue which can also result in death, again mild dengue fever symptoms may appear, but others likely to appear are:

• Intense stomach pain
• Disorientation
• Sudden hypotension (fast drop in blood pressure)
• Heavy bleeding
• Regular vomiting
• Blood vessels leaking fluid
• Death.

Source : 

Fast facts of dengue fever

Fast facts on dengue fever

Here are some key points about dengue fever. More detail and supporting information is in the main article.

• Dengue fever (DF) is caused by any of four closely related viruses, or serotypes: dengue 1-4.
• Dengue is transmitted between people by the mosquitoes Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus, which are found throughout the world.
• Around 2.5 billion people, or 40% of the world's population, live in areas where there is a risk of dengue transmission.
• Dengue is endemic in at least 100 countries in Asia, the Pacific, the Americas, Africa, and the Caribbean.
• WHO estimates that 50-100 million infections occur yearly, including 500,000 dengue hemorraghic fever (DHF) cases and 22,000 deaths, mostly among children.
• Most dengue cases in US citizens occur in those inhabitants of Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, Samoa and Guam, which are endemic for the virus.
• Symptoms of infection usually begin 4-7 days after the mosquito bite and typically last 3-10 days.
• There is no vaccine available against dengue, and there are no specific medications to treat a dengue infection.
• Prevention the most important step, and prevention means avoiding mosquito bites.
• If a clinical diagnosis is made early, a health care provider can effectively treat DHF using fluid replacement therapy.

Source : http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/179471.php

What is dengue fever?

       

   

Dengue fever, also known as break bone fever is a mosquito-borne infection that causes a severe flu-like illness. There are four different viruses that can cause dengue fever, all of which spread by a certain type of mosquito.

     Dengue fever can vary from mild to severe; the more severe forms include dengue shock syndrome and dengue haemorrhagic fever (DHF). Patients who develop the more serious forms of dengue fever usually need to be hospitalized.

        There are currently no vaccines for dengue fever. The best way to prevent the disease is to avoid being bitten by mosquitoes altogether. Although there is no certain treatment for dengue, it can be treated as long as it is caught before developing into dengue shock syndrome or dengue haemorrhagic fever.

Stop Dengue!

Hello everybody!

We are the students of Sekolah Menengah Kebangsaan Seri Bentong have created this blog none other than for a noble mission which is to create awareness on the prevention of dengue fever, a mosquito-borne infection. As we are one of the participating school of national level Dengue Patrol programme 2015, we are to empower the step to empower the community by creating awareness about dengue and educating people about preventive measures to make our community dengue free. Please support us and let us defeat this silent war together.