Dengue Fever

Question 1

What type of infection is Dengue Fever?

Answer 1

Viral
(RNA virus of the genus Flavivirus)

Question 2

What can Dengue fever progress to?

Answer 2

viral haemorrhagic fever

Question 3

Other viruses which can progress to viral haemorrhagic fever

Answer 3

Yellow Fever
Ebola

Question 4

How is the Dengue Fever virus transmitted?

Answer 4

by the “Aedes aegypti” mosquito

Question 5

Incubation period

Answer 5

7 days

Question 6

Clinical features of dengue fever

Answer 6

• fever
• retro-orbital headache
• myalgia/bone pain/arthralgia
• pleuritic pain
• facial flushing
• maculopapular rash

Question 7

Haemorrhagic manifestations of dengue fever

Answer 7

• positive tourniquet test
• petechiae
• purpura/ecchymosis
• epistaxis

Question 8

“Warning signs”

Answer 8

abdominal pain
hepatomegaly
persistent vomiting
fluid accumulation (ascites, pleural effusion)

Question 9

Clinical features of severe dengue fever (dengue haemorrhagic fever)

Answer 9

DIC => thrombocytopenia/ spontaneous bleeding

20-30% develop dengue shock syndrome (DSS)

Question 10

Typical findings on blood tests in dengue fever

Answer 10

• Low white cells
• low platelets
• raised aminotransferases

Question 11

Diagnostic test for dengue fever

Answer 11

• serology
• nucleic acid amplification tests for viral RNA
• NS1 antigen test

Question 12

Management of dengue fever

Answer 12

• Symptomatic
  e.g. fluid resuscitation, blood transfusion etc

NO antivirals are currently available