Dengue fever cases, a viral infection transmitted by mosquitoes and currently affecting half of the world's population, are at an all time high across the Americas, Africa, the Middle East, Asia, and the Pacific Islands.
Brazil, Argentina, Peru and several other Latin American countries have declared a state of emergency over recent outbreaks. In Asia: Bangladesh, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam have all been badly affected.
Around 36,000 deaths per year are attributed to the virus, and this has spiked since 2023. Different strategies are being employed to combat the outbreaks, including two vaccines in the late stages of development, and 100 million anti-dengue mosquitoes being released across Brazil.
What is dengue fever?
Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne viral infection caused by the dengue virus, transmitted primarily by Aedes mosquitoes, with Aedes aegypti the biggest offender. For those who paid attention in science and understand the way viruses work: it belongs to the Flaviviridae family and has four distinct serotypes (DEN-1, DEN-2, DEN-3, and DEN-4).
In real terms, this manifests as a range of nasty symptoms, which usually appear 4 to 10 days after the mosquito bite. These may include:
- Sudden high fever
- Severe headache
- Pain behind the eyes
- Joint/muscle pain
- Extreme tiredness
- Nausea/vomiting
- Skin rash - appearing 2-5 days after the onset of fever
So far, so grim, but in some cases, dengue fever can progress to a more severe and potentially life-threatening form called severe dengue or dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF). The symptoms of severe dengue can include abdominal pain, persistent vomiting, bleeding gums, rapid breathing, extreme fatigue, restlessness, and signs of circulatory failure.
The amount of patients experiencing severe symptoms and needing hospitalisation has led to the state of emergency declarations across Latin America, as well as a worldwide shortage of insect repellent causing panic buying and stocks running out - in much the same way, and with more serious consequences, that panic-buying toilet roll led to empty supermarket shelves during the Covid outbreak.
How do you prevent dengue fever?
Preventing dengue fever needs constant vigilance. On a large scale, it involves controlling mosquito populations by eliminating breeding sites. On a personal level, the way to combat contracting the virus if you're in an affected area is by using insect repellents, wearing protective clothing, and making sure you use mosquito screens on windows and doors. There is currently no specific antiviral treatment for dengue fever, so supportive care to manage symptoms is typically provided, rather than a 'cure'.
I'm travelling to a dengue-affected area - should I be worried?
It's normal to be concerned if you think you're heading to an affected country, but as the advice above illustrates, there are plenty of measures you can take to stop yourself becoming infected. The most obvious and important one is to use insect repellent, and bearing the shortages in mind - take as much as you need with you on your trip.
While we don't claim that Love Bites Only will stop you getting dengue fever if you become exposed, what we do know is that our nasties-free, tropical smelling, extremely effective formulation provides protection against a range of insects including mosquitos, and that if you apply it before exposure and reapply regularly, you can feel confident in your protection. their are ingredients present in the solution which have been proven to be effective against such insects. It's sare for use on children, so you can slather your little ones (and awkward teens) in it too, and there's no worries about horrible chemicals over their skin in yours, or anywhere else you wouldn't want them, so if you're applying whilst out and about, that's one less thing to worry about.
Dengue is bad right now, but don't let it put you off your travels!
LBO x