Dengue fever: Warning signs of mild and severe dengue everyone must know

While dengue may be asymptomatic or mild, it can turn severe, and that too very fast. Know warning signs of mild and severe dengue from expert and when to get admitted to hospital.

Prolonged monsoons and resultant increase in mosquito breeding has led to substantial rise in dengue cases this year. DENV-2, a deadly dengue virus variant with severe symptoms is especially becoming a cause of worry. Dengue haemorrhagic fever and Dengue shock syndrome are among serious complications of dengue and can even cause death. If you have been diagnosed with dengue previously, you may unfortunately get it again, as the viral infection caused by the bite of an infected mosquito called Aedes Aegypti, has multiple variants like DENV-1, DENV-2, DENV-3 and DENV-4. The best practice is to prevent mosquito bites, wear long sleeves and keep your body fully covered. Fumigation, controlling mosquito breeding, avoiding stagnant water are other methods that can help prevent transmission of the disease.

"A single person can be infected with dengue fever more than once. It is a viral disease, transmitted by the infective bite of a particular mosquito known as Aedes Aegypti. This condition causes flu-like symptoms after 5 – 6 days of being bitten by an infective mosquito. There is no vaccine for dengue fever. It is important to follow all necessary precautions to prevent mosquito bites. In some cases when dengue fever is mild, it may not show any symptoms," says Dr. Avi Kumar, Senior Consultant, Pulmonology. Fortis Escorts, Okhla Road, New Delhi.

Dr Kumar also shared symptoms of mild and severe dengue with us.

SYMPTOMS OF MILD DENGUE

Symptoms of dengue fever begin after four to seven days of being bitten by an infected mosquito. There are a few who may have no symptoms. When symptoms do occur, they can be mistaken for other illnesses such as the flu.

Symptoms of dengue include:

- Sudden high fever which can be up to 104-106 degrees F. Most people recover within a week or so. In some cases, symptoms worsen and can become life-threatening. This is called severe dengue, dengue haemorrhagic fever, or dengue shock syndrome. It causes a sudden drop in blood pressure resulting in death in some cases.

- Severe joint and muscle pain: It is one of the most lethargic dengue symptoms that make patients feel very tired. It leads to making the person weak and difficult to stand or walk; every little normal routine will feel like a tough exercise. Dengue tiredness is very different from normal lethargy. Dengue fever is also accompanied by joint pain which is a highly uncomfortable.

- Skin rash: After 2 to 5 days of fever onset, skin rashes start, and it is one of the peculiar symptoms of dengue. One should consult a doctor immediately on seeing rashes on the skin with a high fever. It is one of the ways that helps a doctor to eliminate dengue from the suspected list of diseases.

- Nausea: A person will feel extremely nauseated, and hunger will be missing, preventing them from eating anything. They feel like throwing up whenever they eat anything. Extreme vomiting is also observed in people suffering from dengue fever.

- Pain behind the eyes: Dengue patients will suffer from severe headaches and constant pain behind the eyes that causes a lot of discomfort.

Warning signs of severe dengue or dengue haemorrhagic fever:

Dr Kumar says that if anyone observes the below-mentioned signs and symptoms of severe dengue, they must immediately visit a doctor so that they can help with further proceedings, remedies, and treatments.

- Nose bleeding: Due to a drastic drop in platelet count, the body is susceptible to active bleeding from the mouth or nose. Internal bleeding may also take place which causes easy bruising.

- High fever: People infected with dengue will be suddenly bedridden with a high fever which may be 106 Fahrenheit or 41 degrees Celsius.

- Severe abdominal pain: A person may suffer from muscle pain as well as abdominal discomfort which makes it worse to bear. It is better to show up to a doctor than intake over-the-counter medications.

- Platelet count drop: There is a drop in the platelet count drastically which is found after doing a blood test for dengue. It is an alarming symptom and shouldn’t be ignored at any cost. Usually, the platelet count ranges from 1.5 lakh - 4.5 lakh per microliter of blood. In a person suffering from dengue, this count may go down to 20,000 or even lower; however, it is normalized once the person recovers from Dengue.

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