Dengue fever cases in Thailand have quadrupled in one week

[cyberfarang]

I had dengue once and it`s horrible.

Every day I get bitten by mosquitoes, both indoors and outdoors, I cannot see anyways to avoid them unless covering myself with repellent 24 hours a day.

[cumgranosalum]

BTW - before you can claim to have had Dengue, you need a blood test...this is the only way to catagorically ID the infection. The test has to be carried out at the right time etc., etc.

It is unfortunate that many doctors are relying solely on symptoms to "classify" someone's illness as Dengue.

There are several other illnesses that display same or similar symptoms to dengue.

The other side of the coin is that mny people who get only a mild form of Dengue don't know they have it and don't seek medical advice or report it.

A potential problem here is that it is widely believed that second or third infections with dengue can be more serious that the first....and people who have had a mild infection before are unaware that they are exposed to this possible added risk.

[cumgranosalum]

I had dengue once and it`s horrible.

Every day I get bitten by mosquitoes, both indoors and outdoors, I cannot see anyways to avoid them unless covering myself with repellent 24 hours a day.

There are several adjustments you can make.

Get rid of any standing water near where you live. e.g. flower pots old tires..anything that can hold even the smallest amount of water.

Make sure you mosquito screens are all fitted properly.

Spray rooms before use from time to time.

Wear sensible clothing. Long legs and sleeves give good protection.

Be aware of the prime times for biting; around dawn and dusk. You might want to use a repellant at those times too.

Make sure your repellent works - e.g. DEET or pecarin...so-called "natural" repellants are not so effective and don't last so long either.

check out the places that mosquitoes like to rest - laundry and washing and under furniture in your house. During the heat of the day they rest in shaded places.

familiarise how a mosquito detects you and take evasive action, wearing light colored clothing reduces you visibility for a start.

I lived in a low-lying mosquito infected house for about 5 years, it was a constant battle to keep the mozzies down.

I used a lot of mozzies sticks imported from Oz out side and they were very effective in clearing the area you were sitting in. Coils were quite effective too.....I never slept in a room with a lit coil though.

my Thai neighbour sold up and moved because of the mosquitoes.

[cumgranosalum]

Except that Dengue is a prominently urban disease. It spreads best when people are close together, as it has to be transmitted by the mosquito from an infected person to another and the mosquito has a limited flight range.

yes and the story says with that limited flight range it has spread to a majority of provinces in a week

The disease is spread by biting female mosquitoes - teir flight range is about 2 to 400 meters.

They have to bite an infected person first and then incubate the virus before they can transmit it, once they have done that they will continue to be infected for the rest of their life - about 3 weeks.

Mozzies actually only fed about once or twice every 24 hours.

however a PERSON infected with the dengue virus (it takes about 5 days to present) can move about great distances, so an infected person can transport the disease anywhere in the world, they then need to be bitten by an Aedes mosquito which then needs to bite someone else......and so on....

In areas of high population density with extra mosquitoes triggered by rising water in pools, the transmission of the disease can increase exponentially.

[rosst]

Most of the new cases reported this year struck in young people aged between 15 and 24, according to Dr Sopon Mekthon, permanent secretary of public health. This demographic is reportedly most at risk from the disease.

does anyone happen to know the scientific reason for this?

It's an interesting question indeed. Dengue is mostly contracted during the daytime. Perhaps this age range is more likely to come into contact with Aedes aegypti if they are outside. Aegypti will mostly breed around houses. Perhaps this age range is more likely to be at home at this time and/or more active outdoors, thus more likely to come into contact with mosquitoes.

The long period of dry, followed by the recent rains in BKK have probably caused a mass emergence on mosquitoes. Aedes eggs generally need to be dried (conditioned), before they hatch.

Dengue fever is also related to mumps which effect the young, apparently we can build some sort of immune response with age.

[Scott]

MMS cures dengue in about 4 hours. [done it myself -works !!!]

So does Vitamin C and lots of water.

Problem is: It's all too cheap and there is no profit in cheap stuff.

That's why cheap solutions are always rejected from the health-business-professionals ... bad for the people but good for business.

It's an insane system we live in.

Bad and dangerous advice which others should ignore.

There is NO "cure" for dengue but on occasion very specific medical treatment is required to counter the effects of potentially lethal "complications"

This is a reminder that this is the news section of the forum and this is about the rise in cases of Dengue fever.

If you wish for medical advice, we suggest you use the Health Forum.

Any treatment should be done with the guidance of a certified medical health provider.

Please be aware that Dengue fever is potentially life-threatening.

Also, posts and replies with oversized graphics have been removed.

[SiSePuede419]

OK, Dengue virus is transmitted by "Ades" genus (striped dayfeeder) mosquitoes. But don't blame the mosquito. It's a reservoir, and can only give you the Dengue virus that it itself got from a dengue-infected human.

So, it makes sense, the closer you are to someone infected with Dengue, same room, same house, same apartment, same village market...the more likely you are to contract Dengue. This genus likes dawn and dusk, so not being around mosquitoes during those hours lowers the risk immensely.

[cumgranosalum]

OK, Dengue virus is transmitted by "Ades" genus (striped dayfeeder) mosquitoes. But don't blame the mosquito. It's a reservoir, and can only give you the Dengue virus that it itself got from a dengue-infected human.

So, it makes sense, the closer you are to someone infected with Dengue, same room, same house, same apartment, same village market...the more likely you are to contract Dengue. This genus likes dawn and dusk, so not being around mosquitoes during those hours lowers the risk immensely.

The risk is greater in an area with both mosquitoes and humans. that is partly why it is an urban disease.... but there is no risk being in close proximity or coming into contact with a person with the disease...the disease is carried by the female mosquito...you can only get the disease if an infected mozzie bites you.

Also, you have to take into account the time it takes for the virus to develop in the mosquito after biting an infected person and the bite rate of the female mosquito.

[Haecksler]

Dengue is a virus and must be first detected by your immune system.
The virus goes through cell membranes thus causing internal bleedings. (therefore never use Aspirin as a pin killer in the tropics)
Afterwards the immune system can fight against.
How successful this battle is depends heavily on your physical condition.
Your physical conditions depends heavily on the way you are treat your body. (training diet)
Is there a link between the mentioned group of infected people in Thailand between the age of 15 - 24??
I mean the mass of junk food everywhere and the dramatic increasing amount of overweight youth?
May be some expert can reply.
What was not mentioned in all you posts is that 80% of all dengue infections are not critical.
Only 20% are acute and 8% of those are lethal thus reported.
My first infection was almost not detected. (week symptoms but clear dengue symptoms) I just went to the doctor because of skin rash on large surfaces.
The blood test gave the evidence.
Papaya leaves contains bitter substances which are helpful to support the curing process. I heard this many times and I think you can't make anything wrong with it.
Avoid stagnant water, how ever the biggest breeding ground for mosquito in Thailand is the drainage system which is build almost without slope hence stagnant water without access.

[kannot]

"they always leave buckets/bowls turned the right way up so they fill full of water, a nice breeding ground for the mosquitoes"

I can tell the city slickers every time this topic comes up.

In order to eliminate stagnant water, you would have to eliminate all rice production.

Rice needs stagnant water to grow.

I live outside Pranburi, 99% dont grow rice here as its too dry ie driest part of Thailand I believe......... ps I live on 15 rai of land with no neighbours "cityboy" oh yeah and that pond has over 4000 fish in which will chomp any mosquito larvae to death as well as all my water lilies.............I once had!!

[kannot]

The same mosquito is now spreading an infection in Southern America, causing babies to be born with abnormal head size (BBC NEWS today)

Someone should catch this dam mosquito and kill it before it infects anyone else.

Theyre pretty fast even outran Spitfires at over 400mph

[kannot]

My GF has a 30 gallon garbage can in her salon she keeps filled with water in case the water pump fails. I saw some mosquitos flying around it and some larva swimming around. I brought it to her attention and she said there was a local medical center for Thais that provided a chemical to add to the water to kill any mosquito larva and prevent more eggs. We went promptly and asked for the chemical. Reply was they were all out and we should go to the OrBorTor and inquire. We did. Same answer told to come back in a week (the old Thai standby answer). Went back in a week and still nothing. I did the math. I presume you can add as well without writing in a public forum the obvious conclusion. Fortunately, other nations are working on a vaccine.

why not put small fish in , or bleach.

better still the girlfriend

[kiwikeith]

I have had it 3 times over a 4 year period. Dont tell me you cant get it twice because you can. Am living proof of it. But that is not the point. Here in Bangkok where I live the mosquito problem is rampant! I live next to a wet market that operates from 4AM till noon. Have asked the govt department that deals with it to come over after my 3rd infection to fume the place. But nope!!! The market people went nuts claiming they loose a days trade. Oh well.... And lately the kids at the market here also got infected but still they wont budge! Guess as soon as the kids of the owner get it something will be done.

The smoke bomb people don,t ask when they come up the soi and smoke you, had to run inside and close all the windows , no notice they smoke anyone in their path including children.

.

[cumgranosalum]

"they always leave buckets/bowls turned the right way up so they fill full of water, a nice breeding ground for the mosquitoes"

I can tell the city slickers every time this topic comes up.

In order to eliminate stagnant water, you would have to eliminate all rice production.

Rice needs stagnant water to grow.

If that was the case, Dengue would be most prominent around the rice fields.....which it isn't, it is in the city.

Or are you suggesting that the mosquitoes breed in the rice fields and then fly into the cities to bite people?

[taony]

In the cities, there are a lot less of the other insects and animals that would eat the larva / mosquitoes.

[cumgranosalum]

it's fatal that the existing dengue fever vaccine is not available here in Thailand....!

There is no really effective vaccine for dengue because dengue is a combination of 4 types of malaria. There are vaccines for the individual types but nothing that goes across all of them in a single shot

That is completely wrong - there are NO vaccines that treat just the one strain...the new and only available vaccine protects against 4 strains. (I believe there is now a 5th strain as well)

If you get one strain of Dengue you will then become immune to that strain, but it seems that you are more likely to have a serious reaction to other strains, that is why it has taken so long to develop a vaccine that will protect against Dengue with exacerbating the effects of subsequent infections.

[cumgranosalum]

Dengue is a virus and must be first detected by your immune system.

The virus goes through cell membranes thus causing internal bleedings. (therefore never use Aspirin as a pin killer in the tropics)

Afterwards the immune system can fight against.

How successful this battle is depends heavily on your physical condition.

Your physical conditions depends heavily on the way you are treat your body. (training diet)

Is there a link between the mentioned group of infected people in Thailand between the age of 15 - 24??

I mean the mass of junk food everywhere and the dramatic increasing amount of overweight youth?

May be some expert can reply.

What was not mentioned in all you posts is that 80% of all dengue infections are not critical.

Only 20% are acute and 8% of those are lethal thus reported.

My first infection was almost not detected. (week symptoms but clear dengue symptoms) I just went to the doctor because of skin rash on large surfaces.

The blood test gave the evidence.

Papaya leaves contains bitter substances which are helpful to support the curing process. I heard this many times and I think you can't make anything wrong with it.

Avoid stagnant water, how ever the biggest breeding ground for mosquito in Thailand is the drainage system which is build almost without slope hence stagnant water without access.

"The virus goes through cell membranes thus causing internal bleedings." - where did you get that from???? Cells don't contain blood, blood is made of cells.

[cumgranosalum]

I have had it 3 times over a 4 year period. Dont tell me you cant get it twice because you can. Am living proof of it. But that is not the point. Here in Bangkok where I live the mosquito problem is rampant! I live next to a wet market that operates from 4AM till noon. Have asked the govt department that deals with it to come over after my 3rd infection to fume the place. But nope!!! The market people went nuts claiming they loose a days trade. Oh well.... And lately the kids at the market here also got infected but still they wont budge! Guess as soon as the kids of the owner get it something will be done.

The smoke bomb people don,t ask when they come up the soi and smoke you, had to run inside and close all the windows , no notice they smoke anyone in their path including children.

.

If you close your windows, you stop the "smoke" from killing the mozzies resting in your house.

[cumgranosalum]

I have had it 3 times over a 4 year period. Dont tell me you cant get it twice because you can. Am living proof of it. But that is not the point. Here in Bangkok where I live the mosquito problem is rampant! I live next to a wet market that operates from 4AM till noon. Have asked the govt department that deals with it to come over after my 3rd infection to fume the place. But nope!!! The market people went nuts claiming they loose a days trade. Oh well.... And lately the kids at the market here also got infected but still they wont budge! Guess as soon as the kids of the owner get it something will be done.

On;y a fool would suggest you can't get Dengue twice. ...however you are likely to be immune to the STRAIN your caught - there a 4 (even 5) strains of Dengue.

I hope your infections were diagnosed with blood tests .... subsequent infections appear to run the risk of being more severe than the first, so you need to be absolutely sure that you had dengue each time.

[PaPiPuPePo]

I'm so thankful that I am one of the lucky few who manages to produce a natural repellent to mosquitoes. There have been many studies undertaken to find out why, and theories range from CO2 release, diet and a natural production of several hormones and chemicals. I have been in LOS for 6 years now and can count how many times I have been bitten on 1 hand, again luckily. More studies need to head towards this because the mosquito is the single most deadliest thing to our species.

Not to diminish the mighty mosquito, but I think our own species is the deadliest thing to our own species.

[SunsetT]

speaking of private hospitals.... that's why in Chiangmai I think the best bet in town is the Siripat Clinic at Maharatt Hospital.... over any others because they have the volume of patients of complex cases as well. I'd rather be treated by staff who have a lot of experience than a fancy place with a helipad and a great coffee shop but can't even get the basic stuff done such as correctly taking & recording a patient's temperature for the doctor's interview (mine, this happened but NOT at Maharrat for sure.... i.e. this not a story it's real) as "normal" when in fact, both before and after it was 104 degrees F... let alone have experience with many patients as the only ones they have are a handfull of farlang. at the private hospital the politics between the doctors and nursing staff, and appearances of having all the latest and greatest equipment and clean white doctor's uniforms is more important than making a simple and basic, and also correct, diagnosis.

.....And in Udon Thani dolly birds in short skirts escort you to pay your bill BEFORE you pick up your prescribed goody bag full of medications, most of which you dont need and are twice the price than if purchased over the counter at any pharmacy. You are then a lot less likely to question it or complain about it............Very devious!

Thank God for the NHS in the UK....................Dont let the Tories sell it off.

[cumgranosalum]

I'm so thankful that I am one of the lucky few who manages to produce a natural repellent to mosquitoes. There have been many studies undertaken to find out why, and theories range from CO2 release, diet and a natural production of several hormones and chemicals. I have been in LOS for 6 years now and can count how many times I have been bitten on 1 hand, again luckily. More studies need to head towards this because the mosquito is the single most deadliest thing to our species.

Not to diminish the mighty mosquito, but I think our own species is the deadliest thing to our own species.

I think you'll find that mozzie-born diseases account for one of the largest numbers of deaths amongst humans...exceeding war even.

[cumgranosalum]

speaking of private hospitals.... that's why in Chiangmai I think the best bet in town is the Siripat Clinic at Maharatt Hospital.... over any others because they have the volume of patients of complex cases as well. I'd rather be treated by staff who have a lot of experience than a fancy place with a helipad and a great coffee shop but can't even get the basic stuff done such as correctly taking & recording a patient's temperature for the doctor's interview (mine, this happened but NOT at Maharrat for sure.... i.e. this not a story it's real) as "normal" when in fact, both before and after it was 104 degrees F... let alone have experience with many patients as the only ones they have are a handfull of farlang. at the private hospital the politics between the doctors and nursing staff, and appearances of having all the latest and greatest equipment and clean white doctor's uniforms is more important than making a simple and basic, and also correct, diagnosis.

your perception of how Thai hospitals work is not quite right.

Doctors - who do most of the diagnosing - in Thai hospitals are largely itinerant and don't just work in one hospital. So who sees you and how they diagnose can be a lottery regardless of which hospital you choose.

[SunsetT]

Use alot of bug spray. If you dont like the nasty stuff, try some natural stuff. I blend one part citronella, with two parts eucalyptus oil, and two parts lemon grass. I dilute it with one part water. It works really well. Only for about two hours, but that is usually enough. It smells pretty nice too, and it is not toxic.

Why go to all that trouble for just 2 hours protection! Nothing wrong with DEET. It is safe. Google it. The American military have been using it since the 1930's with no known side effects or long term problems.

[cumgranosalum]

Use alot of bug spray. If you dont like the nasty stuff, try some natural stuff. I blend one part citronella, with two parts eucalyptus oil, and two parts lemon grass. I dilute it with one part water. It works really well. Only for about two hours, but that is usually enough. It smells pretty nice too, and it is not toxic.

Why go to all that trouble for just 2 hours protection! Nothing wrong with DEET. It is safe. Google it. The American military have been using it since the 1930's with no known side effects or long term problems.

Most people I know use a 30%v DEET repellant in the evenings when sitting outside etc...so it doesn't involve a huge amount of time on your skin.....and you're right, much of the bad stuff you hear about DEET is unfounded...I believe some people have skin reactions and you are advised not to wear it while you sleep....but it is far more effective than any so-called "natural" remedies which are of course just chemical themselves. I guess the fact thew DEET smells bad is enough to make some people paranoid.

BTW - Anything over about 30% DEET has been shown to have no extra efficacy

[SunsetT]

MMS cures dengue in about 4 hours. [done it myself -works !!!]

So does Vitamin C and lots of water.

Problem is: It's all too cheap and there is no profit in cheap stuff.

That's why cheap solutions are always rejected from the health-business-professionals ... bad for the people but good for business.

It's an insane system we live in.

Bad and dangerous advice which others should ignore.

There is NO "cure" for dengue but on occasion very specific medical treatment is required to counter the effects of potentially lethal "complications"

I stand to what I wrote ! It works and it is proven !

I am writing this to help as obviously "school medicine" has no solution [makes me wondere though .... ].

If you can prove me wrong just do it ... I can prove I am right as I have done this and it works [not only for dengue but for many other issues as well]

...So all you have to do is send a dengue patient an MMS message and they will be cured in 4 days....Thats amazing.........

[cumgranosalum]

MMS cures dengue in about 4 hours. [done it myself -works !!!]

So does Vitamin C and lots of water.

Problem is: It's all too cheap and there is no profit in cheap stuff.

That's why cheap solutions are always rejected from the health-business-professionals ... bad for the people but good for business.

It's an insane system we live in.

Bad and dangerous advice which others should ignore.

There is NO "cure" for dengue but on occasion very specific medical treatment is required to counter the effects of potentially lethal "complications"

I stand to what I wrote ! It works and it is proven !

I am writing this to help as obviously "school medicine" has no solution [makes me wondere though .... ].

If you can prove me wrong just do it ... I can prove I am right as I have done this and it works [not only for dengue but for many other issues as well]

...So all you have to do is send a dengue patient an MMS message and they will be cured in 4 days....Thats amazing.........

It's not proven at all....the plural of anecdote is not data.

[spidermike007]

Use alot of bug spray. If you dont like the nasty stuff, try some natural stuff. I blend one part citronella, with two parts eucalyptus oil, and two parts lemon grass. I dilute it with one part water. It works really well. Only for about two hours, but that is usually enough. It smells pretty nice too, and it is not toxic.

Why go to all that trouble for just 2 hours protection! Nothing wrong with DEET. It is safe. Google it. The American military have been using it since the 1930's with no known side effects or long term problems.

Most people I know use a 30%v DEET repellant in the evenings when sitting outside etc...so it doesn't involve a huge amount of time on your skin.....and you're right, much of the bad stuff you hear about DEET is unfounded...I believe some people have skin reactions and you are advised not to wear it while you sleep....but it is far more effective than any so-called "natural" remedies which are of course just chemical themselves. I guess the fact thew DEET smells bad is enough to make some people paranoid.

BTW - Anything over about 30% DEET has been shown to have no extra efficacy

The ones I use are made of only a mixture of three essential oils. So, no chemicals. It is hard for me to imagine these essential oils can be of much toxicity. They smell pleasant, and they work well. I prefer not to go anywhere near DEET.

[SunsetT]

Use alot of bug spray. If you dont like the nasty stuff, try some natural stuff. I blend one part citronella, with two parts eucalyptus oil, and two parts lemon grass. I dilute it with one part water. It works really well. Only for about two hours, but that is usually enough. It smells pretty nice too, and it is not toxic.

Why go to all that trouble for just 2 hours protection! Nothing wrong with DEET. It is safe. Google it. The American military have been using it since the 1930's with no known side effects or long term problems.

Most people I know use a 30%v DEET repellant in the evenings when sitting outside etc...so it doesn't involve a huge amount of time on your skin.....and you're right, much of the bad stuff you hear about DEET is unfounded...I believe some people have skin reactions and you are advised not to wear it while you sleep....but it is far more effective than any so-called "natural" remedies which are of course just chemical themselves. I guess the fact thew DEET smells bad is enough to make some people paranoid.

BTW - Anything over about 30% DEET has been shown to have no extra efficacy

The cheap Thai creams and sprays contain only 13 or 15% but they work fine for me........Choice of mild and pleasant fragrences too. I dont like using any spray products as you inevitably must inhale some which cannot be good for your health.

[SunsetT]

Use alot of bug spray. If you dont like the nasty stuff, try some natural stuff. I blend one part citronella, with two parts eucalyptus oil, and two parts lemon grass. I dilute it with one part water. It works really well. Only for about two hours, but that is usually enough. It smells pretty nice too, and it is not toxic.

Why go to all that trouble for just 2 hours protection! Nothing wrong with DEET. It is safe. Google it. The American military have been using it since the 1930's with no known side effects or long term problems.

Most people I know use a 30%v DEET repellant in the evenings when sitting outside etc...so it doesn't involve a huge amount of time on your skin.....and you're right, much of the bad stuff you hear about DEET is unfounded...I believe some people have skin reactions and you are advised not to wear it while you sleep....but it is far more effective than any so-called "natural" remedies which are of course just chemical themselves. I guess the fact thew DEET smells bad is enough to make some people paranoid.

BTW - Anything over about 30% DEET has been shown to have no extra efficacy

The cheap Thai creams and sprays contain only 13 or 15% but they work fine for me........Choice of mild and pleasant fragrences too. I dont like using any spray products as you inevitably must inhale some which cannot be good for your health.