Staff Reporter
If your fever suddenly increases, for example, you had a fever in the afternoon, but at night your fever increased to 102-104 degrees. This type of fever is called “viral fever”.

If this severe fever is accompanied by chills, cough, sore throat, then this group is called “influenza like illness”.

And if this severe fever is accompanied by body aches, pain behind the eyes, severe headache, then we can suspect the patient in this group as dengue fever.

Dengue patients usually have high fever for the first 3 days. However, dengue patients usually get worse within 3-7 days and those who have had dengue one or more times before.

How do you know that a dengue patient will get worse
1. If the patient has stomach pain.
2. If the patient vomits three or more times in the last 24 hours.
3. If the patient bleeds from any part of the body (through the roots of the teeth, through the nose, with vomiting, with stool, etc.).
4. If there is fluid in the chest and abdomen.
5. If the platelet count decreases very quickly and if the hematocrit count increases very quickly.
The above dengue patients should be adequately If adequate fluid management is not done, they go into the “critical stage”.

Which patient do we call “critical”?
1. If a patient has fluid in his chest and abdomen and if the patient has difficulty breathing, this stage is called “plasma leakage”
2. If there is a lot of bleeding from the body and blood pressure drops (plus pressure drops)
3. If there is any organ failure.
Patients who need to be admitted to the hospital:
1. Patients with danger signs (discussed above).
2. Critical stage patients.
3. If the dengue patient already has diseases such as pressure, diabetes.
4. If the dengue patient is pregnant.

What tests should be done if dengue is suspected:
1. Dengue can be detected through the “NS1” test up to the first 3 days of fever.
2. Dengue can be detected through the “Dengue IgM” test within 3-7 days.
3. “Dengue IgG” test can be done to know if dengue has been previously diagnosed.
4. However, it is better to do “CBC” test in all cases, this test can show platelet count and hematocrit count and makes it easier to do “fluid management” which is very important in dengue treatment.

Dr. Md. Abdullah AL Mamun
Assistant Registrar
Department of Medicine
Kushtia Medical College Hospital, Kushtia.