Many people are seeing doctors with fever, headache, body aches and weakness, yet testing negative for dengue and chikungunya, prompting questions about whether a new virus is spreading. The Institute of Epidemiology, Disease Control and Research (IEDCR) says it has found no evidence of one so far.
Professor Dr Ahmed Nawsher Alam, chief scientific officer of IEDCR's virology department, said dengue, measles, influenza and other known diseases are circulating, and children may also have respiratory viruses such as RSV and adenovirus. "We have not detected anything new," he said. But the institute cannot test samples from every patient in the country, he added, and when a dengue-negative patient recovers, the specific cause of the fever is usually not looked for.
Professor Dr Nelson Tapas Mondal of the medicine department at Enam Medical College and Hospital said hospitals mainly test for dengue and rarely for Covid or other viruses. Many patients with dengue-like symptoms test negative, and some take longer to recover. Finding out whether a new virus is involved could take more tests, he said, but not every patient can afford them.
Dr A B M Abdullah, former professor of medicine at Bangladesh Medical University, said known diseases should be considered before a new virus: influenza, typhoid, pneumonia and other causes can bring fever, and cases rise almost every year at this change of season. Doctors note that a negative dengue result does not rule the disease out; it depends on which test was used and how many days after the fever began.
Whatever the cause, Professor Abdullah urged people to take the possibility of dengue seriously. Falling blood pressure, a weak pulse, passing less urine, sudden unusual weakness, severe abdominal pain, repeated vomiting or bleeding can be danger signs, and a child who suddenly becomes listless needs attention. Older people, pregnant women and those with diabetes, high blood pressure, kidney, liver or heart disease or cancer need extra care. Complications of dengue can come even after the fever falls; doctors advise rest and plenty of water and fluids.
Reporting: Naya Diganta.
Photo: Menchi / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 3.0)
Source: Naya Diganta
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