“Dengue is mostly non-hemorrhagic if it is diagnosed and treated timely. We are getting a large number of dengue patients in Kolkata. Most of these patients are aged between 20 and 50. This year, there are a number of cases of acute liver failure due to dengue. The liver is usually affected on days 4, 5, and 6. Such patients are very high in number,” stated Dr Rahul Jain, inside drugs specialist at Belle Vue Clinic, Kolkata.

“Some alarming signs like shortness of breath, chest pain and inability to stand or walk, constant vomiting, inability to retain fluid and blood in stool are being noticed. If anyone is having or developing these symptoms they must see the doctor,” Dr Jain added.

Warning that self-medication in dengue will be harmful, Dr Jain stated, “Medication should never be done without the doctor’s advice. Nobody should take antibiotics for dengue unless there is a secondary infection. Only paracetamol can be used in prescribed doses. No painkiller or herbal medicine like papaya leaves should be used. Intake of giloy is a strict no-no as it can cause severe liver injury if one is dengue positive.”

Also, lately, there was a noticeable surge in dengue circumstances amongst youngsters aged 5 to fifteen. This rise will be attributed to the resumption of colleges and different actions. Many children are contaminated with dengue for the second and third time, thus making it deadly with extreme problems.

Dr Jaydeb Ray, Principal of the Institute of Child Health, identified that hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis complication in dengue is deadly.

“This time, we are seeing another complication among the children suffering from dengue. In some cases, the complications of hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis are being seen. This makes it different from the conventional dengue. It is easier for children to recover if this complication is detected early or they may suffer from multi-organ failure,” he added.

Cautioning that it may be harmful if a toddler is contaminated with dengue for the second time, Dr Ray stated, “In many cases, we noticed that the family of a dengue-positive child was not aware as and when they got infected by the disease earlier. An antibody test is a must in such a case to find out if a patient had dengue earlier.”

Dr Arindam Chakraborty, a senior medical officer of tropical drugs, stated that the dengue mosquito retains altering its traits with time. “It was believed that the dengue mosquitoes bite during daytime only but now we are seeing that they are biting even at night. It is better to use a mosquito net while sleeping at night. Some entomologists claim to have noticed that they found larvae even in unclean water,” he stated.

“We attend to several cases of malaria regularly. Fatalities are also high in such cases. There is no antibiotic that works in malaria. If you have a high fever then go for tests for malaria, dengue, urine infection, and typhoid to start the right treatment at the earliest,” stated Dr Chakraborty.

© The Indian Express (P) Ltd