Does dengue fever go away on its own? Can the patient shower?

This is an automatically translated article.

The article is professionally consulted by Associate Professor, Doctor, Doctor Hoang Dang Mich - Head of Department of Medical Examination & Internal Medicine - Vinmec Ha Long International Hospital.
These months (March - April) and around the beginning of July to November every year are favorable times for the development of midges. Dengue fever is a disease that has appeared for a long time and is now controlled in many ways, however, not everyone understands this disease. Many questions about diseases such as dengue fever can go away on its own, can dengue fever be bathed, etc. The following article will help you equip yourself with knowledge about this disease.

1. Favorable conditions for Dengue fever outbreak

Dengue fever is an acute infectious disease caused by a virus called Dengue. This virus is usually transmitted from person to person through mosquitoes. If you are accidentally bitten by this mosquito and transmit the disease to your body, within 4-5 days, you will contract dengue fever.
It is worth noting that during these months (March - April) and around the beginning of July to November every year is a favorable time for the development of midges. In the North, these two periods were also the time when a strong outbreak of dengue fever occurred. Particularly in the South, due to the dense distribution of midges, mosquitoes can get sick at any time.

2. Developmental stages of the disease

Dengue fever can be cured or not within a few days depending on how the disease develops, including:
Incubation period: period This will take an average of 4-7 days. Dengue virus depends on each location and the immunity of each object that multiply gradually, until the quantity is enough, it will cause many specific symptoms and the disease moves to the next stage. Dengue fever phase: at this stage lasts from about 2-7 days and often has symptoms similar to flu. This is not a dangerous stage and may appear some symptoms such as headache, sore throat, nausea, fatigue... and especially high fever (from 39 to 40 degrees Celsius). Critical stage: most patients will no longer have a fever during this stage, but this is the most dangerous time to decide whether the disease is serious or not. At this time, the dengue virus has weakened the immune system a lot. Therefore, white blood cells and platelets decrease significantly, affecting the patient's resistance ability. You need to have monitoring and daily visits from your doctor. Recovery phase: if the patient passes the above stage, the patient's body will slowly recover. At that time, the heart rate and hemodynamic stability are stable, with frequent urination, appetite and thirst. Thus, dengue fever will resolve on its own in theoretically mild and moderate cases. In fact, the patient needs to be examined to assess the condition and stage of the disease for specific advice from the doctor.
In general, depending on each patient, the course of dengue fever will be different.
Dengue fever has an average duration of 7 to 10 days. With proper care, the disease will heal on its own without much intervention from the doctor.

3. Can dengue fever be bathed?

When infected with dengue fever, the patient can completely bathe normally. However, if you have a lot of low platelets, you need to avoid vigorous scrubbing because it will cause bleeding under the skin or in the muscles, which is extremely dangerous.
You also need to pay attention: During the period from the end of the 3rd to the 7th day of illness, fever symptoms may decrease markedly. But that does not mean that the disease is relieved. Some other complications such as increased permeability of the vessel wall, thrombocytopenia ... will appear and cause bleeding at different levels.
Therefore, during this time, you should limit bathing because it will make the vessel walls dilate, making bleeding worse. It is best to use a warm towel to wipe your body. In case of force majeure need to shower, you should take a bath with warm water. Absolutely remember, do not use cold water to bathe because it will cause the skin vessels to contract, the internal vessels to dilate, leading to a very high risk of death.
Thus, depending on each specific case and stage, whether or not dengue fever can be bathed will change. In general, bathing during illness will not be a problem if you follow the instructions from your doctor and do not need to completely abstain from this.

4. Some notes to remember when taking care of dengue patients

Regularly check the temperature to prevent high fever or abnormal body temperature. Use a warm towel to cool your body. If the fever is high, place a towel in the armpit and groin area to lower the body temperature. Wear loose, light clothing, preferably made of cotton. Avoid taking medicines such as Aspirin or Ibuprofen to reduce fever because the active ingredients in these drugs can cause very dangerous gastrointestinal bleeding. Instead, you should take Paracetamol as prescribed by your doctor. Should drink a lot of water. You can give your baby Oresol water to replenish electrolytes in the body. Only in case the patient has a high fever (above 38.5 degrees Celsius) should the drug be used. Each dose should be spaced at least 4 to 6 hours apart.

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Article compiled from the source: Ministry of Health