CDC updates global travel notice as incurable brain-bleed virus dengue fever spreads in the Americas
Health officials have issued an updated travel warning as deadly mosquito-borne dengue fever spreads in the Americas.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has revised its global travel notice list of countries where travelers are at ‘increased risk’ of catching the incurable virus.
In its most recent update, the agency added four new countries in South and Central America – Cuba, Ecuador, Panama and Peru – to the warning. It already listed Bolivia and Colombia.
It also added one new country in central Africa, Chad, and Wallis and Futuna, a French overseas territory in Polynesia.
The alert continued to list the following countries: Bangladesh, Cambodia, Kenya, Malaysia, Marshall Islands, Vanuatu and Vietnam.
All the countries are under a ‘level 1’ alert for dengue fever, which warns travelers of the heightened risk of an infection and urges them to practice ‘usual precautions’ to protect themselves from mosquito bites.
This includes wearing long sleeve shirts, t-shirts and pants, regularly applying insect repellent and sleeping in air-conditioned rooms or those fitted with window screens.
Dengue fever is often called ‘breakbone fever’ because patients who get sick with the virus typically develop a sudden high fever along with a pounding headache, pain behind the eyes and deep aches in the muscles, joints and bones.
Pictured above is an Aedes aegypti mosquito, the mosquito species which is capable of transmitting the dengue fever virus to humans
Cases of dengue fever are recorded in the US every year, although these are almost all linked to travel.
But this year the nation is recording a local outbreak of the disease in Florida, which has already sickened 524 people and led to one death.
These outbreaks can happen if a person infected with dengue fever moves to a region and is bitten by a mosquito, which then becomes infected with the virus and can pass it on when it bites another person. Florida is already home to mosquitoes that are capable of carrying the dengue virus.
Overall, the CDC has recorded 2,842 cases of dengue fever across the US and its territories so far this year.
Florida has recorded the most cases, a total of 906, of which 382 are linked to travel and 524 are locally acquired, or in people who had not recently traveled out of the country.
Last year, the state registered 62 locally acquired cases of dengue fever.
Officials in Hillsborough County in the state and the surrounding areas have declared local emergencies, while mosquito-control workers in the Tampa area are spraying around the clock to curb the spread of disease-carrying mosquitoes.
Virginia is the only other state to register locally-acquired infections this year, detecting nine cases in people who had not recently left the country.
Dengue fever often causes an asymptomatic infection, but in some patients it can trigger life-threatening internal bleeding, respiratory distress and heart failure.
The updated list of countries reporting higher-than-usual numbers of dengue fever cases included four new countries in South America
It can also lead to shock and organ failure, especially of the liver, brain and heart.
Health officials say about 40 to 80 percent of people infected with dengue fever do not develop any symptoms, but if symptoms do develop, they appear abruptly about five to seven days after infection.
Warning signs include a fever above 100F (38C), severe headache, pain behind the eyes, bone, joint or muscle pain, and bleeding in the gums.
Some patients also develop redness of the skin on the face within the first 24 to 48 hours of symptoms emerging.
In severe cases, patients may also suffer from severe abdominal pain, persistent vomiting and lethargy.
Patients may also develop dengue shock syndrome, a condition where severe bleeding leads to a rapid drop in blood pressure and causes the body to go into shock.
Children under five, adults over 65 and pregnant women are considered to be most at risk from the virus.
There is no specific cure for dengue fever and treatment consists of supportive care and therapies to manage symptoms and complications.
Doctors recommend patients with mild symptoms drink plenty of fluids and take Tylenol to ease pain.
In severe cases, patients may be admitted to the hospital for supportive care, an IV, blood pressure monitoring and a transfusion to replace lost blood.
To protect against dengue fever, there is a three-dose vaccine available, which is recommended for children ages nine to 16 years who have previously been confirmed to have a dengue infection. It slashes the risk of a symptomatic infection by about 80 percent.
