Dengue fever
Dengue fever is the fastest growing mosquito-borne disease, affecting over 50 million people each year across the world, and continuing to grow both in prevalence and severity. Symptoms range from mild undifferentiated flu-like symptoms to high fever, rash, severe headache, pain behind the eyes, and muscle and joint pain. The severity of the joint pain has given dengue the name ‘breakbone fever’. Nausea, vomiting, and loss of appetite are also common. In the more severe form of dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF) blood vessels start to leak and cause bleeding from the nose, mouth, and gums. Without prompt treatment, the blood vessels can collapse, causing shock (dengue shock syndrome) and ultimately fatality.
There are around 25,000 fatalities each year and severe cases require hospitalization and constant monitoring. Dengue is an extremely expensive disease, estimated to cost the global economy over $5 billion per year.
The dengue virus consists of four immunologically related, single positive-stranded RNA viruses known (DENV-1 through DENV-4) of the genus Flavivirus. Once infected, a person can develop a lifelong immunity to that strain of the virus but can become more susceptible to the other three strains.
There is neither specific medication nor vaccine for dengue. The only way currently to control the disease is to control the mosquito, Aedes aegypti, which spreads the disease.
Dengue fever occurs in most tropical areas of the world – see map. It is common in Asia, the Pacific, Australia, Latin America and the Caribbean. A recent Natural Defense Resource Council report shows that 28 US states are now at risk.
Further information