The academic and researcher of the USerena Ecological Entomology Laboratory, Jaime Pizarro-Araya explains the ways in which the disease presents, the symptoms and care that must be taken into consideration.

Without a doubt, the presence of dengue in our country, with 135 confirmed cases, the highest number in recent years, and the discovery of the transmitting mosquito in Los Andes, in the Valparaíso Region, has the health authorities on alert, who reinforced surveillance measures, especially in the different entries to the country from abroad, since all of the cases existing today in Chile are imported.

In addition to this, to date more than 3,5 million cases have been registered in Latin America, where the most affected countries are Brazil, Paraguay and Argentina. Furthermore, the presence of the mosquito vector – Aedes aegypti – is spreading to new geographical areas, so it is important to be informed about the effects that this disease brings.

Faced with this, the academic and researcher of the USerena Ecological Entomology Laboratory, Jaime Pizarro-Araya, explains the considerations that must be kept in mind when faced with the presence of this disease. 

“First, we must consider that dengue is a disease transmitted by animals to us, transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which can be a vector of a virus that transmits this disease that presents quite particular symptoms, since there are four varieties of dengue. The mild symptoms of dengue can be confused with other diseases that cause fever, aches or pains. The most common symptom is fever, but it can be accompanied by eye pain, headache, muscle pain, skin erosion, bone pain, nausea and vomiting, including joint pain,” explains the expert.

Regarding the symptoms of dengue, the academic indicates that “they generally last between two to seven days and most people recover about a week, considering that it is variant 1 of the virus. However, 1 in 20 people who get sick with dengue have a serious illness and that is related to variant 4 of this virus, which is a much more serious type of disease that can cause shock, hemorrhages, internal or even death.”

The entomologist adds that “a person is more likely to have severe dengue fever if they have already had a previous dengue infection, that is, they have already been through situations of being bitten by an infected mosquito before. And, unfortunately, babies and pregnant women are at greater risk of developing severe dengue, therefore, it is important to be aware and preventive when traveling to tropical places, especially here in South America.”

Finally, Dr. Pizarro - Araya, provided recommendations regarding the presence of symptoms and the possible contagion of this disease, indicating that “if you think you have dengue, the first thing is to consult a medical care center, comment on the symptoms present and the trip that could have been made, since it is very possible that this disease has been infected in some tropical place, since in Chile dengue is not endemic except for Easter Island. Regarding care, one of the recommendations is to rest, use paracetamol to control fever and relieve pain and please do not take aspirin or ibuprofen. This has to be accompanied by abundant fluid intake or even isotonic drinks.”