Rio declares Dengue emergency

• Rio de Janeiro has declared a public health emergency because of an outbreak of dengue fever.
• The Brazilian city declared the emergency, just days before Carnival celebrations kick off across Brazil.

ABOUT DENGUE FEVER

• Dengue (DENG-gey) fever occurs in tropical and subtropical areas of the world.
• Vector- an infected Aedes species (Ae. aegypti or Ae. albopictus) mosquito.
• Dengue is caused by one of any of four related viruses: dengue virus 1, 2, 3, and 4.
• A person can be infected with dengue multiple times in their life.
• Mild dengue fever causes a high fever and flu-like symptoms.
• The severe form of dengue fever, also called dengue hemorrhagic fever, can cause serious bleeding, a sudden drop in blood pressure (shock) and death.
• Dengue fever is most common in Southeast Asia, the western Pacific islands, Latin America and Africa.
  • But the disease has been spreading to new areas, including local outbreaks in Europe and southern parts of the United States.
• The symptoms usually begin four to 10 days after being bitten by an infected mosquito.
• Dengue fever causes a high fever — 104 F (40 C) — and any of the following signs and symptoms-
  • Headache, Muscle, bone or joint pain, Nausea, Vomiting, Pain behind the eyes, Swollen glands, Rash etc.
• There is no specific treatment for dengue. The focus is on treating pain symptoms.