By NewsDesk  @infectiousdiseasenews

In an update on the dengue fever situation in Brazil, officials in Paraná state report 157 deaths and 217,891 confirmed cases of dengue since July 2019, when the current epidemiological period began.

Public domain image/Deyvid Aleksandr Raffo Setti

According to the the biweekly bulletin of the State Department of Health (Sesa) today, 243 municipalities in the state are in a epidemic situation of the disease, while 30 cities are on alert for the disease.

The municipalities with the highest number of suspected cases reported are Londrina: 51,974, Foz do Iguaçu: 25,638 and Maringá: 16,955.

According to the secretariat, dengue prevention and control care must be maintained by the population even in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic and the arrival of winter. Sesa notes that about 90% of breeding sites are in households.

Year to date, Brazil has recorded 1,243,188 total dengue cases, including 437 deaths.

Dengue is a viral infection transmitted by the bite of an infected mosquito. There are four closely related but antigenically different serotypes of the virus that can cause dengue (DEN1, DEN 2, DEN 3, DEN 4).

Dengue Fever (DF) – marked by an onset of sudden high fever, severe headache, pain behind the eyes, and pain in muscles and joints. Some may also have a rash and varying degree of bleeding from various parts of the body (including nose, mouth and gums or skin bruising).Dengue has a wide spectrum of infection outcome (asymptomatic to symptomatic). Symptomatic illness can vary from dengue fever (DF) to the more serious dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF).


Dengue Hemorrhagic Fever (DHF) – is a more severe form, seen only in a small proportion of those infected. DHF is a stereotypic illness characterized by 3 phases; febrile phase with high continuous fever usually lasting for less than 7 days; critical phase (plasma leaking) lasting 1-2 days usually apparent when fever comes down, leading to shock if not detected and treated early; convalescence phase lasting 2-5 days with improvement of appetite, bradycardia (slow heart rate), convalescent rash (white patches in red background), often accompanied by generalized itching (more intense in palms and soles), and diuresis (increase urine output).

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Dengue Shock Syndrome (DSS) — Shock syndrome is a dangerous complication of dengue infection and is associated with high mortality. Severe dengue occurs as a result of secondary infection with a different virus serotype. Increased vascular permeability, together with myocardial dysfunction and dehydration, contribute to the development of shock, with resultant multiorgan failure.