Dengue Fever Essay

1800 Words4 Pages

Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne viral infection that has a widespread incidence. There are four closely related virus strains that cause dengue that are known as DENV 1, DENV 2, DENV 3, and DENV 4. The virus is transmitted to humans indirectly by mosquitos, of which Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus are the primary vectors. The Aedes aegypti mosquito is also recognized as the species that spreads other viral diseases such as chikungunya, yellow fever, and the Zika virus. Dengue has a pronounced presence in tropical regions and because urbanization and accessibility to international travel, the disease is able to travel at a much faster rate. The impact that dengue fever has health and socioeconomic implications on the global populations, …show more content…

The disease has an incubation period of about four to five days after the mosquito bite before symptoms develop. Dengue in its most mild form rarely results in death, and people who have been infected with the virus have lifelong immunity to the particular serotype of the virus. Dengue fever is more likely to become lethal when the virus develops into one of two lethal forms, dengue hemorrhagic fever or dengue shock syndrome. The disease progresses into dengue hemorrhagic fever, additional symptoms that accumulate include hemorrhaging and shock. After the fever declines, there is a 24 to 48 period in which the capillaries become permeable and fluid leaks into the peritoneum and pleural cavity, which causes the severe abdominal pain that is often felt by those afflicted. Signs that the disease has progressed into dengue hemorrhagic fever are a low platelet count, skin hemorrhaging, excessive bleeding on the nose and gums, and internal bleeding. Without treatment, the circulatory system will ultimately fail and the person will go into shock and …show more content…

The now worldwide distribution of the disease has made dengue able to cause more illness and death than any other arbovirus disease. The increased distribution in the last 30 years has significant social and global implications. The fact that dengue has a low fatality rate makes surveillance of the disease more difficult, which causes dengue to be regularly undetected or misdiagnosed as another arboviral. The prevalence of dengue fever is often underestimated, which is highly inefficient because epidemics of dengue often cause social and economic disorder. Without accurate estimates of disease estimates, the cost of treatment and vector control is inaccurate, and less people will be able to be treated. Also, the communities with outbreaks of the disease are often ill prepared and unequipped to handle multiple disease

More about Dengue Fever Essay

Open Document