Dengue Fever Epidemic

[Jingthing]

There are reports that due to global warming, dengue fever cases are increasing all over Thailand and SE Asia. How many of us farangs have been effected so far?

Also, did you ever know a farang who died of it?

http://www.chinapost.com.tw/asia/112045.htm

Edited October 28, 2007 by Jingthing

[sbk]

I got Dengue fever about 17 years ago, does that still count? Are you only interested in current cases?

[Jingthing]

No, in general.

Do you think if you stay here long enough, odds are you're gonna get it?

[mart29]

No, in general.

Do you think if you stay here long enough, odds are you're gonna get it?

i had it, not much fun, i think its not so dangerous unless you are a child or elderly, just really nasty illness.

I think not travelling around too much in your day to day life, in central bangkok i hardly ever get bitten and i live there now.

in my apartment i have an electric killing lamp thing and 2 rackets.

i am considering getting a co2 lamp thing as well.

i think its just a case of trying to reduce the number of bites you receive to an absolute minimum.

[Prakanong]

I got it in Cambodia 2002

There are quite a few trials starting up in Thailand for a vaccine candidtate in the very near future - I know some people working on them. Here's hoping they are as successful as the current malaria vaccien trials.

[mart29]

I got it in Cambodia 2002

There are quite a few trials starting up in Thailand for a vaccine candidtate in the very near future - I know some people working on them. Here's hoping they are as successful as the current malaria vaccien trials.

thats really good news, yeah i think its such a big problem its time real resources were thrown at getting rid of this. hopefully it will be got rid of soon with a vaccine.

[Manchester]

It seems to be a particular type of mosquito. One that is predominately black in colour with white spots on its legs and body.

quoted from wikipedia:

1) Although it may feed at any time, the mosquito bites humans only between a few hours after dawn until an hour or so after sunset.

2) The mosquito's preferred breeding areas are in areas of stagnant water, such as flower vases, uncovered barrels, buckets, and discarded tires, but the most dangerous areas are wet shower floors and toilet tanks, as they allow the mosquitos to breed right in the residence

[Prakanong]

I got it in Cambodia 2002

There are quite a few trials starting up in Thailand for a vaccine candidtate in the very near future - I know some people working on them. Here's hoping they are as successful as the current malaria vaccien trials.

thats really good news, yeah i think its such a big problem its time real resources were thrown at getting rid of this. hopefully it will be got rid of soon with a vaccine.

There are candidate vaccines but I was talking to the study manager a couple of years ago and she was explaining the difficulty due to the 4 main strains - I remember the conversation but the science went mainly over my head.

The Medical Dirctor closely concerned with this in Thailand is very good and we are hoping to bring the research hub out to the region soon.

They hope for Malaria around 2010-2011 on the market and dengue a few years after if trials go well.

[mart29]

does anyone have any idea if the city or countryside is worse for it. and what time of year is worst and what time there are the fewest reported cases?

[Prakanong]

does anyone have any idea if the city or countryside is worse for it. and what time of year is worst and what time there are the fewest reported cases?

I thought Dengue was more of an urban disease?

There is a dengue "season" just like a JE season - in Singapore is was a few months ago.

[nullx8]

a friend of mine got it in samut prakan (just before a few months) ...

was 2 weeks out of business ... after that everything back to normal ..

threatment cost in a local clinic was below 2000 baht.

doublechteck in e expensive hospital resulted to the same threatment (just about 10 times the price)

[LeungKen]

There were a few cases reported around the Thalang area of Phuket, in fact my wife's old school teacher died of it about 6 - 8 weeks ago. (apparantly left it too late to go the Doctor, thought she had a cold or the Flu, she was also fairly elderly I believe)

Local Or-Bor-Tor have been round a couple of times since, spraying like crazy, but the little buggers still thrive. (and yes dengue fever is seasonal by all reports)

[Sanpatong]

Never got it.. But then I do take precautions; mainly not being outside at times & places where there's a lot of mosquitos around, especially if they're of the Dengue type.

[lazeeboy]

There were a few cases reported around the Thalang area of Phuket, in fact my wife's old school teacher died of it about 6 - 8 weeks ago. (apparantly left it too late to go the Doctor, thought she had a cold or the Flu, she was also fairly elderly I believe)

Local Or-Bor-Tor have been round a couple of times since, spraying like crazy, but the little buggers still thrive. (and yes dengue fever is seasonal by all reports)

had it 3 times in 14 years ,told by the doctor there are four kinds ,once you've had one kind you become immune to it .also its only carried by the female kind and most likely caught in the daytime ,so l am told .

[Prakanong]

There were a few cases reported around the Thalang area of Phuket, in fact my wife's old school teacher died of it about 6 - 8 weeks ago. (apparantly left it too late to go the Doctor, thought she had a cold or the Flu, she was also fairly elderly I believe)

Local Or-Bor-Tor have been round a couple of times since, spraying like crazy, but the little buggers still thrive. (and yes dengue fever is seasonal by all reports)

had it 3 times in 14 years ,told by the doctor there are four kinds ,once you've had one kind you become immune to it .also its only carried by the female kind and most likely caught in the daytime ,so l am told .

I also thought if you had one of the 4 strains you were immune to that one but I am pretty sure the Dr I mention above told me different when I asked her.

I can check my emails from her tomorrow but if its older than 3 months it will be gone unless I saved it to personal

[mart29]

my impression was that you could develop much immunity to it beyond about 3 months or something like that, cant really remember now.

anyone know when the dengue season is in thailand then?

[Prakanong]

my impression was that you could develop much immunity to it beyond about 3 months or something like that, cant really remember now.

anyone know when the dengue season is in thailand then?

From this article it looks like long lasting for the same serotype and short term from other serotypes http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlere...gi?artid=379334 - it also explains some of the difficulties in creating a vaccine.

"Natural DENV infection induces long-lasting protective immunity only to the same serotype and only short-term (months) protection from infection with other serotypes"

If not posted I will find out Thailands dengue season for you at work tomorrow

This article explains why subsequent infection with Dengue are usually more acute http://www.stanford.edu/group/virus/flavi/2000/dengue.htm

"t is important to understand why an individual will develop DHF/DSS. The Dengue virus has been shown to have 4 subtypes. These 4 subtypes are different strains of dengue virus that have 60-80% homology between each other. The major difference for humans lies in subtle differences in the surface proteins of the different dengue subtypes. After a person is infected with dengue, they develop an immune response to that dengue subtype. The immune response produced specific antibodies to that subtype's surface proteins that prevents the virus from binding to macrophage cells (the target cell that dengue viruses infect) and gaining entry. However, if another subtype of dengue virus infects the individual, the virus will activate the immune system to attack it as if it was the first subtype. The immune system is tricked because the 4 subtypes have very similar surface antigens. The antibodies bind to the surface proteins but do not inactivate the virus. The immune response attracts numerous macrophages, which the virus proceeds to infect because it has not been inactivated. This situation is referred to as Antibody-Dependent Enhancement (ADE) of a viral infection. This makes the viral infection much more acute. The body releases cytokines that cause the endothelial tissue to become permeable which results in hemorrhagic fever and fluid loss from the blood vessels."

Edited October 28, 2007 by Prakanong

[mart29]

ok thats quite scary.... looking up the seasons now...

[intumult]

Discovered, thanks to posts in TV central region, that I had a mild dose.

It is good to know what to look for and the cause too.

Heard of enough Thais being hospitalised with Dengue fever too. Not nice.

[cluezo]

I got it last year in Rayong. Nasty illness.

[Ratsima]

I've had it twice. Once in Bali 30+ years ago and again a few years back here in Isaan.

[farangconnection]

I got Dengue fever about 17 years ago, does that still count? Are you only interested in current cases?

If you got it 17 years ago, then you still have it now,so I reckon it counts.I have read it's like Malaria and stays with you.

[Dirk_brijs]

had it not a year ago.

put me in the hospital for a week and itcing like a crazy the week after.

felt like dying the first 2 days every single inch in my body hurt and I have alot of inches going.

wasnt fun

[Smithson]

I got it about 15 yrs ago, very nasty, lots heaps of weight. Someone told me if you'd had it once, the next time would be much worse.

[Crushdepth]

No, in general.

Do you think if you stay here long enough, odds are you're gonna get it?

If you are careless the odds are quite good of getting it. I know one person who has just got out of hospital from it, and over the last seven or eight years three people in my office got it (probably at work, they tend to leave the doors and windows open).

[Ratsima]

Worth looking at the Wiki article:

Wikipedia on Dengue

Some quotes:

caused by four closely related virus serotypes of the genus Flavivirus, family Flaviviridae.

each serotype is sufficiently different that there is no cross-protection

Dengue is transmitted to humans by the Aedes aegypti (rarely Aedes albopictus) mosquito, which feeds during the day.

(Emphasis added.)

Recent outbreaks: Thailand: May 2005 , 7,200 infected. At least 12 dead.

Which is when I got it.

[Maejo Man]

I got Dengue fever about 17 years ago, does that still count? Are you only interested in current cases?

If you got it 17 years ago, then you still have it now,so I reckon it counts.I have read it's like Malaria and stays with you.

In twenty years of living and travelling all over the kingdom, I picked it up in a city about 17 years ago. Felt like death for a week, delerious, muscular spasms, and just wanted to die. They thought it was Malaria, but Dengue was the final diagnosis.

There is a definite season for it, but can still be contracted at any time. It only needs one of the little blighters to give you a good bite. I like to think I was young and healthy at the time but for children it can be life threatening, as has been shown.

[toptuan]

2) The mosquito's preferred breeding areas are in areas of stagnant water, such as flower vases, uncovered barrels, buckets, and discarded tires, but the most dangerous areas are wet shower floors and toilet tanks, as they allow the mosquitos to breed right in the residence

Put fish in those lotus basins! They love to eat the mosquito larvae that grow there.

Yeah, that bathroom thing. Always gives me a sense of trepidation when I sit, partially-clad, on the old ivory throne!

[Scott]

Got it about 12+ years ago or so. Didn't get medical attention until it was over--I was too sick to go to the Dr.!! It was over Songkhran, so just basically slept through it. Didn't take any medication, but when I went back to work after the holiday and a some sick days on top of it, I went to see the Dr. as I was still not feeling very well. Told me it was Dengue.

It's really quite unpleasant stuff. It's the sickest I ever recall being (basically, I had no idea that close to a week had elapsed since I went to bed).

By the way, I lived in the heart of Bangkok (Rama IV) in a fully screened apartment with AC, so I don't know when or how I got bitten, but just goes to show, that nasty disease is pretty much everywhere.

[cluezo]

Here's a weird fact: you can get Dengue only in the daytime. The Dengue carrying mosquito is a very small, striped, fast little bastard active only in the daytime. Those big suckers you zap with electonic tennis rackets are not Dengue carriers. You must be careful if you have any standing water on or near your property. Old fahioned Thai bathrooms with big tubs of water for showering are especially dangerous as are flower pots. You can get packets of mosuito larve killing powder form any hospital for free. You should dump the powder in standing water once a month. There are 4 types of Dengue. If you get one type you become immune to it for life. But there are three other types out there. I got malaria during the Vietnam war and Dengue last year in Rayong. Both are nasty but I'll take Dengue anyday over Malaria.