Two virus seasons? Scientists worried that the outbreak of dengue may exacerbate the COVID-19 crisis

As the dengue season begins with the beginning of the monsoon in much of India, scientists warn of the overlapping symptoms of COVID-19 and mosquito-borne diseases, and the country’s healthcare infrastructure addresses this dual danger. I’m worried about what I can’t do.

The effects of Dengue-COVID-19’season require two different diagnostic tests and cause great damage to the patient. Each disease further complicates coping with other diseases and is probably more deadly.

The number of COVID-19 cases is competing for the 8,00,000 mark on Friday with 7,93,802 cases and 21,604 deaths, but the incidence of dengue is high.

Based on 2016-2019 data, virologist Shahid Jameel estimates that there are approximately 100,000 to 200,000 confirmed cases of dengue in India each year.

According to the National Vector Borne Disease Control Program (NVBDCP), 1,36,422 dengue cases were diagnosed in 2019, with an estimated 132 deaths.

The virus is endemic, exists year-round in southern India, and in the north monsoon and early winter in northern India, Jameel, CEO of the DBT / Wellcome Trust India Alliance, a public interest group investing in building a framework for biomedical and health research. Told PTI. ..

I have COVID-19 and symptoms such as high fever, headache and body aches.

We warn Dhrubjyoti Chattopadhyay, virologist and vice president of Amity University in Kolkata, that the dengue season can exacerbate the situation for COVID-19 because both viruses can complement each other. did.

This situation has not been well studied. However, he said, the information available from South America proved dangerous and poses significant challenges to their healthcare infrastructure.

The effect is very important. Co-infection is even more deadly due to the overlap of major symptoms. Weakening of the immune system helps others become more deadly.

At the beginning of the dengue season, virologist Upasana Lei joins and the mosquito vector, Aedes aegypti, has a high rate of infection, and the infection is actively spreading.

Every season, dengue fever causes a heavy load on the hospital ward, which is almost out of hand. So we wondered what would happen if we deal with the two threats together. Both have the same symptoms. Are people ready to distinguish between Dengue and COVID 19? We asked Senior Research Fellow, Kolkata, CSIR-IICB.

There are many challenges.

Most patients with a three-day fever should be tested for dengue and for the SARS-CoV-2 virus that causes COVID-19.

Given the current number of COVID-19 patients, is our hospital equipped with beds available for dengue patients, or is the hospital she asked to handle only severe dengue cases?

Jamiel explains how the virus appears in the human body, and dengue virus penetrates through the subcutaneous layer of the skin through mosquito bites, from which types of blood cells called monocytes, macrophages, dendritic cells. Said to reach abundant lymph nodes.

He said the virus proliferates primarily in these cells and can severely alter the basic response of these cells to cytokine production, body injury and infection.

On the other hand, SARS-CoV-2 enters cells primarily through the mucous membranes of the mouth and nasal passages and first replicates in epithelial cells of the upper respiratory tract.

However, in some cases, the infection travels down the trachea to the lungs where it infects the air sacs that exchange oxygen and blood. When the immune system tries to fight the virus, it causes inflammation, fluid buildup in the lungs, and dyspnea and oxygen demand.

That is, both viruses infect via different routes and different cell types. Of course, there are overlaps between physiological effects and immunological responses. Jameel also said that they were most likely to make each disease worse than either infection.

The most likely impact he said would be on health care capabilities.

The first clinical symptoms are similar (high fever), so one is ignored at the expense of the other. According to Jamir, hospitals are primarily in COVID-19 mode and may even reject dengue patients.

He said this was already seen in relation to pregnancy care and childbirth, dialysis and tuberculosis treatment.

We need to be careful and develop a dengue test for febrile illnesses. Thankfully, India has done some very good tests for the Dengue virus. For example, the NS1 antigen test, which is positive on the first day of fever, says Jameel.

Rey pointed out that there are no clinically available vaccines and no specific antiviral drugs to treat them.

The infection can represent low to severe infections, such as simple dengue, severe dengue, and hemorrhagic fever, Ray said.

In the midst of a SARS-CoV2 pandemic, the government is doing its best, but the hospital is running out of beds. She said there is not enough facilities yet to handle the increasing number of coronavirus cases in India every day.

According to Ray, there is little time in the country before the full-blown dengue season begins, so careful preparation is required.

Many dengue patients do not reach the critical care unit (CCU), but a significant percentage occurs. Are there enough ICUs and CCUs to work with Dengue and COVID 19 together?

She said health care and research need to be prepared to fight this upcoming highly realistic situation.