A fever which can cause death!!!!!!!!!!!

This blog tells you about the most common deadly fever these days that is DENGUE FEVER. I searched about it and got some really interesting and useful information about it and now i would like to share it with you.

Of late, in the media, you must be reading or seeing a lot about the Dengue viral gripping parts of India . and pakistan esp. in karachi.This topic help you have a quick understanding of the viral & the necessary precautions to take to safeguard yourself and your family from the viral. Please take time to read it carefully do caution them on the seriousness & advice them to take necessary precautions.


What is Dengue?

* Dengue is a serious viral disease transmitted by the bite of the mosquito, Aedes aegypti.
* Dengue occurs in two forms: dengue fever and dengue haemorrhagic fever.
*Dengue fever is a severe, flu-like illness that affects older children and adults but rarely causes death.
*Dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) is a second more severe form, in which bleeding and occasionally shock occur, leading to death; it is most serious in children.
*Persons suspected of having dengue fever or DHF must see a doctor at once.
*Dengue haemorrhagic fever is a deadly disease and early diagnosis and treatment can save lives. Unless proper treatment is given promptly, the patient may go into shock and die.
*The symptoms of dengue fever vary according to the age and general health of the patient. Infants and young children may have a fever with a measles-like rash, which is difficult to distinguish from influenza, measles, malaria, infectious hepatitis and other diseases with fever. Older children and adults may have similar symptoms or symptoms ranging from mild illness to very severe disease.


Characteristics of Dengue Fever

* Abrupt onset of high fever
* Severe frontal headache
*Pain behind the eyes which worsens with eye movement
*Muscle and joint pains
*Loss of sense of taste and appetite
*Measles-like rash over chest and upper limbs
*Nausea and vomiting

Characteristics of Dengue

. Haemorrhagic Fever & Shock· Symptoms similar to dengue fever
· Severe and continuous stomach pains
· Pale, cold or clammy skin
· Bleeding from the nose, mouth and gums and skin bruising
· Frequent vomiting with or without blood
· Sleepiness and restlessness
· Constant crying
· Excessive thirst (dry mouth)
· Rapid weak pulse
· Difficulty in breathing
· Fainting


Who is most affected?

Children, tourists and travellers are usually at a higher risk for Dengue transmission. However, adults living in endemic areasare in danger too.


When do Dengue mosquitos bite?

Dengue mosquitoes bite in the early morning and the late afternoon.


Where does the Dengue mosquitoe live?

The mosquito rests indoors, in closets and other dark places. Outside, they rest where it is cool and shaded. The female mosquito lays her eggs in water containers in and around homes, schools and other areas in towns or villages. The larvae, known as wigglers, hatch from the mosquitoe eggs, and live in the water for about a week; they then change into a round pupal stage for one or two days, after which the adult mosquito emerges, ready to bite.


Where does the Dengue mosquitoe breed?

Dengue mosquitoes breed in any water-catching or storage containers in shaded or sunny places. Favored breeding places are- Barrels, drums, jars, pots, buckets, flower vases, plant saucers, tanks, cisterns, bottles, tins, tyres, pans, plant saucers and roof gutters, refrigerator drip pans, catch basins, drains, soak-away pits, cement blocks, cemetery urns, plant leaf axils, bamboo stumps, tree cavities and a lot more places where rainwater collects or is stored


How is Dengue spread?

Dengue is spread by the bite of an infected female, Aedes aegypti mosquitoe which has got the dengue virus by taking a blood meal on a person who is ill with dengue. The infected mosquito then transmits the disease through its bite to other people who in turn becomes ill, and the chain continues. The diagram below, illustrates this action.There is no way to tell if a mosquito is carrying the dengue virus, therefore people must protect themselves from all mosquito bites, whichwill also protect against malaria and other mosquito-borne diseases.


How can Dengue be prevented?

As there is no drug to cure dengue or vaccine to prevent it, there are two key measures that can be applied to prevent the spread of Dengue.


Elimination of mosquitoe breeding places

* Cover water containers-Tight covers on water storage containers, will prevent the mosquitoes laying their eggs there. If the cover is loose, mosquitoes can go in and out.
* Septic tanks and soak-away pits-Cover and seal these, so that dengue mosquitoes cannot breed there.
* Removal of rubbish-Garbage articles and other rubbish found around houses can collect rainwater. They should be removed or smashed and buried in the ground or burned, where this is permissible.
* Biological control-Mosquito wigglers can be controlled by small larva-eating fish, such as guppies. These fish can be found in streams or ponds or obtained through pet shops. Bacterial pesticides will also kill mosquito wigglers.
* Chemical control-Safe and easily used larvicides such as temephos sand core granules can be placed in water containers to kill developing wigglers.


Prevent mosquitoe bites

People can protect themselves from mosquito bites by using any of the following means-

* Mosquito coils and electric vapour mats-Slow burning mosquito coils or electric vapour mats are effective in the rainy season, just after sunrise and/or in the afternoon hours before sunset, when dengue mosquitoes bite.
* Mosquito nets-Nets placed over sleeping places can protect small children and others who may rest during the day. The effectiveness of such nets can be improved by treating them with permethrin (a pyrethroid insecticide). Curtains (cloth or bamboo) can also be treated with insecticide and hung at windows or doorways, to repel or kill mosquitoes.
* Repellents-Mosquitoe repellents can be applied to exposed parts of the body where mosquitoes bite. Care should be taken in using repellents on small children and the elderly.
* Screens-Screens on windows and doorways are effective protection against the entry of mosquitoes in homes.
*Protection of people sick with dengue-Mosquitoes become infected when they bite people who are sick with dengue. Mosquito nets and mosquito coils will effectively prevent mosquitoes from biting sick people and help stop the spread of dengue.


Transmission

Dengue viruses are transmitted to humans through the bites of infective female Aedes mosquitoes. Mosquitoes generally acquire the virus while feeding on the blood of an infected person. After virus incubation for 8-10 days, an infected mosquito is capable, during probing and blood feeding, of transmitting the virus, to susceptible individuals for the rest of its life. Infected female mosquitoes may also transmit the virus to their offspring by transovarial (via the eggs) transmission, but the role of this in sustaining transmission of virus to humans has not yet been delineated.
Humans are the main amplifying host of the virus, although studies have shown that in some parts of the world monkeys may become infected and perhaps serve as a source of virus for uninfected mosquitoes. The virus circulates in the blood of infected humans for two to seven days, at approximately the same time as they have fever; Aedes mosquitoes may acquire the virus when they feed on an individual during this period

Characteristics

Dengue fever is a severe, flu-like illness that affects infants, young children and adults, but seldom causes death.
The clinical features of dengue fever vary according to the age of the patient. Infants and young children may have a non-specific febrile illness with rash. Older children and adults may have either a mild febrile syndrome or the classical incapacitating disease with abrupt onset and high fever, severe headache, pain behind the eyes, muscle and joint pains, and rash.
Dengue haemorrhagic fever is a potentially deadly complication that is characterized by high fever, haemorrhagic phenomena--often with enlargement of the liver--and in severe cases, circulatory failure. The illness commonly begins with a sudden rise in temperature accompanied by facial flush and other non-specific constitutional symptoms of dengue fever. The fever usually continues for two to seven days and can be as high as 40-41°C, possibly with febrile convulsions and haemorrhagic phenomena.
In moderate DHF cases, all signs and symptoms abate after the fever subsides. In severe cases, the patient's condition may suddenly deteriorate after a few days of fever; the temperature drops, followed by signs of circulatory failure, and the patient may rapidly go into a critical state of shock and die within 12-24 hours, or quickly recover following appropriate volume replacement therapy.

Treatment

There is no specific treatment for dengue fever. However, careful clinical management by experienced physicians and nurses frequently saves the lives of DHF patients. With appropriate intensive supportive therapy, mortality may be reduced to less than 1%. Maintenance of the circulating fluid volume is the central feature of DHF case management.


What can we do to reduce Dengue?

With little to offer in the way of specific treatment or immunological protection, the key to dengue and DUF control is in reduction of man-vector contact and mosquito control. In those cases where infection becomes established and is recognized as such, medical science can offer good supportive care to prevent shock and the risk of secondary health problems such as dehydration and concomitant infections from claiming the victim. When the problems come to a prepared medical care delivery system one at a time, early diagnosis, good medical practice and supportive therapy usually results in a favorable outcome. When outbreaks are forced upon an unprepared and overburdened health care system, the results can be catastrophic.In addition to improving reporting requirements for dengue and DHT, endemic countries should make modest investments in systems to monitor vector populations and assess the virus serotypes present in the human and mosquito populations. Other measures that worth investment include:Improve dengue and DHF diagnosis and detection by physicians and other health careproviders. Quite surprisingly, dengue and DHF have a low index of suspicion in the minds of physicians, even in endemic areas. The ability of dengue to "mimic" other diseases like malaria, typhoid or even influenza makes differential diagnosis a challenge to all but the best prepared medical personnel. Investments in programs to improve provider awareness of dengue and DHF lead to earlier diagnosis and more favorable outcomes.

* Stockpile intravenous solutions and other critical care commodities. The survival of DUF cases often depends upon the availability of IV solutions and infusion kits. Measures to increase the on-hand stocks of these commodities and introduction of inventory control systems to ensure that expiry dates are not exceeded are good investments.
* Develop and circulate patient management protocols. Uniformity in case management results in better prognoses for DHF cases. Several excellent case management protocols for dengue and DDT have been developed. In service training of providers in the use of these protocols should be a priority for endemic countries.
* Devisefacility contingency plans tofree up hospital beds. The heat of an epidemic is not the best time to decide how to make room for massive increases in patient admissions. Multi institutional workshops to assist decision makers in preparing for emergencies will save confusion and save lives.
* Promote community participation in water systems development and management of containers in which mosquitoes breed Social action and awareness building about the role of containers in Aedes mosquito breeding combined with reasonable public policies concerning community cleanliness has had large effects on dengue rates in Latin America. Investments in improving water systems has residual benefit in dengue control in that it reduces reliance on water storage containers which are a favored breeding site for vector mosquitoes.
* Restrict imports of tires and promote vector control in international travel and commerce. The commercial value of recycling of tires and other potential breeding containers must be considered in light of increased risk. Appropriate policies concerning insecticide treatment of planes, ships and other long distance transport vehicles would have value in reducing the rate of spread of vector and virus populations.
* Develop regional laboratories to carry out surveillance activities. Effective dengue surveillance depends upon the continuous monitoring of three inter related parameters.

Epidemiologic tracking of dengue and DUT cases by location, age, season and geographic setting, Entomologic monitoring of vector mosquito populations according to density, season, infection status and breeding habitat, and Microbiological assessment of viruses in people and mosquitoes I I with respect to serotype, circulation in the environment and in relation to each other.Appropriate surveillance is a technical undertaking which must be conducted with precision and requires considerable laboratory support. Few countries would be able to sustain an effective program without considerable outside support. The development of regional facilities which have linkages to international centers such as the CDC, NIH or WHO would be an appropriate investment that would have a high payoff in national contingency planning, disease containment and vector control.