Protecting babies from dengue outbreak

Dengue fever in babies, infants and children is a worrying condition because this group of subjects is very susceptible, so parents need to pay close attention to protect and care for children to avoid dengue outbreaks.

Dengue is an urgent tropical disease caused by the Dengue virus, transmitted by mosquito bites. Babies born to mothers who have had dengue when they have the disease are often more serious.

Dengue virus is divided into 4 types, called 4 different types of Dengue and all are capable of causing dengue for humans. If a person has previously contracted a disease caused by a dengue virus, and then was infected with another type of Dengue virus, it is very easy to develop into severe dengue, dengue shock, characterized by severe hemorrhage, plasma drainage, thrombocyletes and leukemia.

Some cases of dengue virus infection for the first time can still cause symptoms of severe denguefever , dengue shock. This phenomenon occurs mainly due to a second infection when suffering from another type of Dengue virus, which occurs in both children and adults. However, in infants, a primary infection caused by dengue virus can even lead to dengue shock. Infant haemorrhagic mortality is higher than in older children.

If your family is living or traveling to an area with dengue fever, babies under 12 months of age only need to have a mosquito bite, the risk of dengue is quite high. The best way to protect a child is to limit the risk of mosquito bites.

The complex pathogenesa of severe dengue for primary infant infections, with many age-related interference, is a challenge for scientists. Dengue fever in babies, infants and children is often not studied in detail due to limitations in clinical practice. However, when observing the severity of dengue in infants and infants,scientists decided to focus their research on this group of subjects.

Age-related differences have been identified in cases of dengue. The differences manifested in incidence and specific clinical manifestations. Accordingly, the risk of dengue in newborns is usually higher. In Southeast Asia, the incidence of severe dengue in infants by specific age is 0.5 per 1,000 children aged 3-8 months. The burden of dengue treatment is mainly concentrated in infants and children aged 5 to 9 years.

In Viet Nam, child haemorrhagic fever is quite common, occurring in most provinces throughout the country, especially on the Central coast and the South. The disease occurs year-round but usually outbreaks into large outbreaks around the beginning of the rainy season, peaking around June to October of the lunar calendar and decreasing gradually in the last months of the year. Dengue fever in young children is common in populated places, poor sanitation conditions.

Currently there are no specialty drugs and vaccines against dengue, so the method of disease control is mainly the use of mosquito repellent, mosquito killing, bug killing, active prevention of mosquito bites and the use of chemical measures to handle the appearance of large outbreaks.

Symptoms of dengue in newborns can be difficult to recognize and are similar to those manifested when the child has common infections. Parents should be aware that children with the disease cannot identify themselves or tell their parents about their health status.

Parents should take their child to the doctor if they notice the following signs of temperature changes:

• Fever (from 38 degrees Celsius or more);
• Hypothermia (below 36 degrees Celsius), accompanied by any of the following symptoms:
  • Children are irritable, disturbed, overly agitated or sleepy;
  • Skin rash;
  • Abnormal bleeding (blood in the gums, nose bleeds, abnormal bruising);
  • Vomiting (3 times or more in 1 day).

Studies have explained that IgG antibodies to the mother-derived Dengue virus are the deciding factor in viral load and clinical disease in children through antibody-dependent immuno-boosting mechanisms (ADE), which occurs for serum types of Dengue virus. Dengue infection through the ADE mechanism inhibits the immune response associated with the functioning of cellges. This is shown in several studies in which babies belonging to the study group had an increased sensitivity to various infections.

Treg cells (T lymphocytes with a conditioning function) have prevented responses that protect the body against viruses and accelerate disease progress. The lower response intensity of the adapted T cells leads to the rapid growth of the Dengue virus. Meanwhile, babies have a lower number of specific supporting T cells with antigen, leading to worsening disease. Moreover, the activity of dendritic cells (or dendritic cells) in babies is limited, the ability to produce IL-12 is low, the conditioning function of proteins is not really complete. These causes severe infant and infant haemorrhagic fever, even during the first dengue virus.

Caring for children with dengue at home should follow the instructions of the treating doctor:

• Fever control: Give acetaminophen (paracetamol) and bathe with cool water;
• Water supplements: Help your baby not to lose water due to fever, vomiting or inedable eating;
• Monitor signs of dehydration: The baby's head is concave, the mouth, tongue or lips become dry, eyes are sunken, the child cries but there are few tears, the amount of urine decreases (the number of diaper changes is less than usual).

Take your child to see a doctor if you notice signs of severe dehydration in your newborn.

If you are living or traveling to an area with dengue,parents should actively protect children under 2 months of age using mosquito nets to cover their cradles, strollers and pushchairs. Allow your child to wear spacious clothing, but it is recommended to wear long clothes, which can cover the hands and feet.

Proper use of insect repellents:

• Always read and follow the instructions on the product label. Pay attention to the components that can harm the child, especially children under 2 years of age;
• Adults should apply mosquito repellent to their hands, then apply it to the baby's skin;
• Products containing essential oils of mandipede should not be used for children under 3 years of age.

Get rid of the spawning ground of zebra mosquitoes, kill the cane beetle (tossing) by:

• Drop fish into water containers in the house (such as brass, tanks, wells, chum, cauldrons, lu, stilt …) to kill bugs (tossing);
• Collecting and cleaning waste items around the house, including broken bottles, butter tubes, coconut shells …, cleaning houses, gardens, turning over water containers when not in use;
• Periodically change water in water containers;
• When an outbreak occurs, it is necessary to coordinate with the locality to prevent the epidemic in spraying mosquito-killing chemicals into space.

Dengue in infants, infants and children can lead to death if not diagnosed and treated promptly as directed by a doctor. To prevent dengue from progressing complicatedly, if a child is suspected to have the disease, parents need to take the child to see a doctor at a medical facility.

Source: Cdc.gov and Ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

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• Attention when bathing dengue patients
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