War On Dengue (& Chikungunya)

As far as parenting is concern, some news just doesn't sit right with me. For example:

Taken from http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/1/20/nation/3065279&sec=nation
Tuesday January 20, 2009

War on dengue
By LOH FOON FONG and AUDREY EDWARDS

PETALING JAYA: The Health Ministry has declared war on dengue following an alarming rise in cases and related deaths in the first two weeks of the year.

Minister Datuk Liow Tiong Lai also raised an alarm against chikungunya, which has seen a sharp rise in the number of cases from last year.

Liow, who described the spike in cases as “unusual”, warned that the situation could worsen if there was not enough co-operation from all parties involved.

Go here for the full story.

After almost 6 years of being parents, one thing still freaks my wife and I out, sometimes a little, and sometimes a lot, is when our kids fall sick. If you're living in Malaysia, especially in Kuala Lumpur (Wilayah Persekutuan) and Selangor area, dengue fever is something that we're always watching out for.

But wait, I know about dengue fever, but what in the world is this Chikungunya virus they are talking about? Well if you have not read about it, the Aedes mosquito is the carrier of both Dengue and Chikungunya virus.

First, let's take a look at the little buggers,

From Wikipedia:
The yellow fever mosquito, Aedes aegypti (=Stegomyia aegypti, =Aedes (Stegomyia) aegypti), is a mosquito that can spread the dengue fever, Chikungunya and yellow fever viruses, and other diseases as well. The mosquito can be recognized by white markings on legs and a marking of the form of a lyre on the thorax. The mosquito originated from Africa^[1] but is now found in the tropics worldwide^[2].

Aedes Mosquito - See it, Fear it, KILL IT!

Aedes mosquitoes are most active early morning and late evening. Avoid bringing your child/children out at those times and avoid bringing them to crowded places as the mosquitoes spread the diseases through bites. I know it's kinda hard sometimes, but at least try avoiding public places such as shopping complexes that you know have a lot of mosquitoes, especially at places with high dengue cases.

Quick facts on Dengue and Chikungunya:

To make it easier for you to read, I've compiled information about Dengue Fever and Chikungunya I collected from various sources and tabulated it. Hope this is helpful. I will provide the links to the sources at the end of this post so that you can go and read more about it.

	Dengue Fever	Chikungunya
Incubation Period	Approximately 4 days	Ranging from 3 - 12 days, usually 3 - 7 days
Signs & Symptoms	Sudden burst of continuous high fever (3 - 7 days) Red rashes on skin (may appear as fever reduces) Acute pain in bones, muscles, joints, eye-balls and head Loss of appetite Vomiting Stomach Pain Bleeding from body, nose and mouth	Sudden onset of high fever Redness with rashes appearing on the hand, leg and body Headache Severe joint pains Nausea and vomiting Redness of the eyes Fever can occur for a period from 1 - 7 days (usually 5 days) (Commonly mistaken for dengue fever)
Rush to hospital when	High fever with bleeding symptoms Suspect Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever (DHF)(Severe Dengue with complications) Blood spots under the skin (petechiae) Bleeding from gums Nose Bleeding (epistaxis) Vomiting blood (hematemesis) when acompanying normal dengue symptoms	In Malaysia, Chikungunya has never been reported as causing haemorrhage ordeath
Care & Treatment	No specific treatment, must let it run it's course Use supportive care - pain relief, drink fluids, rest - Use Panadol (paracetamol) - Do NOT use aspirin (salicyclic acid) - Do NOT use ibuprofen Watch out for bleeding symptoms (DHF)	No specific treatment treated symptomatically (treating for specific symptoms) Majority need only outpatient treatment
Vaccine	No vaccine	No vaccine
Immunity	There are four types of dengue viruses DEN1, DEN2, DEN3 & DEN4. A person infected with one type of dengue will subsequently only be immune to that type. They will not be immune to other types of dengue and will, in fact, be at risk of developing severe symptoms if they contract another type of dengue.	Most patients who have been infected will be immune for life.
Is it Contagious?	It is not contagious, in other words one human can't directly pass to another human. However an aedes mosquito after biting an infected person can transmit the disease by biting someone else	Same as dengue

One of the best way to battle these diseases is to prevent the Aedes mosquitoes from breeding. Click the below flyers/posters provided by http://www.infosihat.gov.my to learn how to do it.

Chikungunya

Dengue Fever

Dengue Fever

References:
Do visit these sites for more information on Dengue Fever and Chikungunya:
1. Wikipedia (on Aedes Aegypti)
2. Info Sihat (for both diseases)
3. World Health Organisation (WHO) (for Dengue Fever)
4. Queensland Government website (for Dengue Fever)
5. www.stanford.edu/group/virus/flavi/2000/dengue.htm (for Dengue Fever)
6. diabetescare.yoscare.in/content/chikungunya-what-you-must-know (for Chikungunya)

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