Dengue fever: Signs your dengue infection is turning severe

This year's dengue infection outbreak has been dreadful, and there have been several reports of infections taking a turn for the severe and high hospitalizations, with a newer, DENV-2 variant in circulation.

Now, while dengue, which can present a lot of overlapping symptoms in common to infections like the flu or COVID, it is also an infection which should not be treated lightly, and can manifest complications, if the right treatment isn't followed. With the DENV-2 strain, said to be harsher on those who have battled dengue before, and/or have pre-existing illnesses, it's necessary that one remains careful, and any worsening symptoms be recognized at the earliest.

Also read: When is the dengue mosquito most likely to bite? Preventive care tips to keep dengue risk at bay

As experts say, while a dengue infection is quite widespread and most commonly causes less-threatening symptoms, severe dengue could strike someone who has a high risk condition. In its more lethal forms, the dengue infection could turn into dengue hemorrhagic fever and dengue shock syndrome, which not only can affect adults and kids, but is quite life-threatening. Severe dengue may also occur when a person who has developed immunity to one strain of the virus becomes infected with another strain. It's also more commonly seen in elderlies, and those with severe pre-existing problems.

Do remember, while there may be no tell-tale signs or clear diagnosis, it's suggested that warning signs and symptoms of a severe dengue infection can show up 3-7 days following the onset of infection. It can firstly cause a confusing drop in body temperature (confusingly suggestive of the infection getting better), but cause other symptoms as well, which could be signs that the viral infection is rapidly spreading to your vital organs.

A person with severe dengue requires medical attention at the earliest. While platelet drop isn't always the suggestive sign of requiring help with dengue, an individual who gets dengue should also be on the lookout for these early warning signs:

Experiencing respiratory distress or any difficulties in crucial respiratory functions can be a sign that dengue infection has caused acute inflammation in the upper respiratory tract. Shortness of breath, low oxygen levels, rapid breathing, chest pain could be some of the symptoms experienced and make a patient require prompt care.

Since a severe dengue infection could also impact other vital organs, a patient should also be alert to spot any signs of vital organ compromise. It is also said that with severe dengue, the liver too could be enlarged, and for some, heart function could be compromised as well.

A severe dengue infection can cause profuse damage to some of the blood vessels in the body, making blood leak or pool up. This happens because when an infected mosquito bites a human, the dengue virus enters the bloodstream, it binds to platelets and replicates leading to multiplication of infectious virus. One of the first ways this shows up could be changes in the skin- spots of blood pooling could show up on the skin, causing a reduction in platelet levels. Bleeding in dengue patients could also occur due to reasons like thrombocytopenia, dysfunctional platelet count.

Severe stomach pain, abdominal cramps accompanied by persistent vomiting could be signs your digestive system is in trouble with severe dengue. Not only are gastrointestinal complications very commonly seen in dengue patients, issues like abdominal pain could crop up if there's plasma leakage in and around the vital organs, which could lead to fluid accumulation. Thus, even though less common than other signs, it's one symptom which shouldn't be ignored or taken lightly.

One of the important signs of deteriorating health with a severe dengue infection is the apparent changes to one's mental state. When the infection rapidly spreads, the virus could travel to the brain, disrupt important nervous functions, blood vessels, which could render it difficult for the body to establish brain-body coordination. When the illness worsens, or the fever doesn't reduce, a person can experience signs of discomfort including delirium, hallucinations, changes in mental state , alertness. Loss of consciousness can also be witnessed in some cases.

With the onset of hemorrhagic fever in severe cases, a sharp decrease in the platelet levels, and severe bleeding could cause blood pressure levels to drop significantly, which could shock the body. Also, when there is an abrupt change from extreme high temperature to low body temperature (hypothermia) with low blood pressure levels, hospitalization should be considered.