A Resource Unit on

Dengue Fever
Submitted by:
Myles Hao
Submitted to:
Ms. Pacquibot
Clinical Instructor

UNIVERSITY OF CEBU BANILAD

RESOURCE UNIT
DENGUE FEVER
GENERAL OBJECTIVES: At the end of 20 minutes of health teachings; I will be able to gain knowledge and skills and develop positive attitude towards the concept
of: Dengue Fever

SPECIFIC
OBJECTIVES
Specifically, they will
be able to:

CONTENT

INTRODUCTION:
Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne disease that occurs in tropical and
subtropical areas of the world. Mild dengue fever causes high fever, rash,
and muscle and joint pain. A severe form of dengue fever, also called
dengue hemorrhagic fever, can cause severe bleeding, a sudden drop in
blood pressure (shock) and death.
Millions of cases of dengue infection occur worldwide each year. Dengue
fever is most common in Southeast Asia and the western Pacific islands,
but the disease has been increasing rapidly in Latin America and the
Caribbean.

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2 minutes
Visual Aids

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1. What is dengue?
Dengue fever is spread through the bite of mosquitoes that carry the virus.
The virus cannot spread from person to person through casual contact.
People who have dengue fever should be protected from mosquito bites. If
a mosquito bites an infected person, the mosquito becomes infected with
the virus and can pass it to other people.
2. What causes
dengue?

3. What are the

symptoms of
Dengue?

Dengue fever is caused by any one of four dengue viruses spread by

mosquitoes that thrive in and near human lodgings. When a mosquito bites
a person infected with a dengue virus, the virus enters the mosquito. When
the infected mosquito then bites another person, the virus enters that
person's bloodstream. After you've recovered from dengue fever, you have
immunity to the virus that infected you but not to the other three dengue
fever viruses. The risk of developing severe dengue fever, also known as
dengue hemorrhagic fever, actually increases if you're infected a second,
third or fourth time.

Many people, especially children and teens, may experience no signs or

symptoms during a mild case of dengue fever. When symptoms do occur,
they usually begin four to 10 days after you are bitten by an infected
mosquito. Signs and symptoms of dengue fever most commonly include:

Fever, as high as 106 F (41 C)

Headaches
Muscle, bone and joint pain

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Pain behind your eyes

You might also experience:

Widespread rash

Nausea and vomiting

Rarely, minor bleeding from your gums or nose

Most people recover within a week or so. In some cases, symptoms worsen
and can become life-threatening. Blood vessels often become damaged and
leaky. And the number of clot-forming cells (platelets) in your bloodstream
drops. This can cause:

Bleeding from your nose and mouth

Severe abdominal pain

Persistent vomiting
Bleeding under the skin, which might look like bruising
Problems with your lungs, liver and heart

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If severe, dengue fever can damage the lungs, liver or heart. Blood
pressure can drop to dangerous levels, causing shock and, in some cases,
death.
4. Diagnosing
Dengue

Diagnosing dengue fever can be difficult, because its signs and symptoms
can be easily confused with those of other diseases such as malaria,
leptospirosis and typhoid fever.
Your doctor will likely ask about your medical and travel history. Be sure

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to describe international trips in detail, including the countries you visited

and the dates, as well as any contact you may have had with mosquitoes.
Certain laboratory tests can detect evidence of the dengue viruses, but test
results usually come back too late to help direct treatment decisions.

5. Treatment

No specific treatment for dengue fever exists. Your doctor may recommend
that you drink plenty of fluids to avoid dehydration from vomiting and
high fever. Acetaminophen (Tylenol, others) can alleviate pain and reduce
fever. Avoid pain relievers that can increase bleeding complications
such as aspirin, ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin IB, others) and naproxen sodium
(Aleve, others).
If you have severe dengue fever, you may need:

Supportive care in a hospital

Intravenous (IV) fluid and electrolyte replacement

Blood pressure monitoring
Transfusion to replace blood loss

6. Prevention

So for now, if you're living or traveling in an area where dengue fever is

known to be, the best way to avoid dengue fever is to avoid being bitten by
mosquitoes that carry the disease.
If you are living or traveling in tropical areas where dengue fever is
common, these tips may help reduce your risk of mosquito bites:

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Stay in air-conditioned or well-screened housing. It's particularly

important to keep mosquitoes out at night.

Reschedule outdoor activities. Avoid being outdoors at dawn,

dusk and early evening, when more mosquitoes are out.
Wear protective clothing. When you go into mosquito-infested
areas, wear a long-sleeved shirt, long pants, socks and shoes.
Use mosquito repellent. Permethrin can be applied to your
clothing, shoes, camping gear and bed netting. You can also buy
clothing made with permethrin already in it. For your skin, use a
repellent containing at least a 10 percent concentration of DEET.
Reduce mosquito habitat. The mosquitoes that carry the dengue
virus typically live in and around houses, breeding in standing water
that can collect in such things as used automobile tires. Reduce the
breeding habitat to lower mosquito populations.

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