Open main menu
Search Wikipedia
Watch this page
Dengue fever
For other uses, see Dengue fever (disambiguation).
Dengue fever
Photograph of a person's back with the skin exhibiting the characteristic rash of dengue fever
The typical rash seen in dengue fever
Classification and external resources
Pronunciation UK /ˈdɛŋɡeɪ/ or US /ˈdɛŋɡiː/
Specialty Infectious disease
ICD-10 A90
ICD-9-CM 061
OMIM 614371
DiseasesDB 3564
MedlinePlus 001374
eMedicine med/528
Patient UK Dengue fever
MeSH C02.782.417.214
Dengue fever, also known as breakbone fever, is a mosquito-borne tropical disease caused by the dengue virus. Symptoms include fever, headache, muscle and joint pains, and a characteristic skin rash that is similar to measles. In a small proportion of cases, the disease develops into the life-threatening dengue hemorrhagic fever, resulting in bleeding, low levels of blood platelets and blood plasma leakage, or into dengue shock syndrome, where dangerously low blood pressure occurs.
Dengue is transmitted by several species of mosquito within the genus Aedes, principally A. aegypti. The virus has five different types;[1] infection with one type usually gives lifelong immunity to that type, but only short-term immunity to the others. Subsequent infection with a different type increases the risk of severe complications. As there is no commercially available vaccine, prevention is sought by reducing the habitat and the number of mosquitoes and limiting exposure to bites.
Treatment of acute dengue is supportive, using either oral or intravenous rehydration for mild or moderate disease, and intravenous fluids and blood transfusion for more severe cases. The number of cases of dengue fever has increased dramatically since the 1960s, with between 50 and 528 million people infected yearly.[2][3] Early descriptions of the condition date from 1779, and its viral cause and transmission were understood by the early 20th century. Dengue has become a global...
