A Case of Dengue from Pune, India

Dengue is an acute infectious disease, caused by a single stranded ribonucleic acid (RNA) virus of the family of Flaviviridae, genus Flavivirus, transmitted by Aedes mosquitos, the most important vectors being Aedes aegypti and Aedes albopictus. There are four serotypes, DEN-1, DEN-2, DEN-3, DEN-4 that are nearly human specific. The geographical distribution of dengue is pantropical, except for Madagascar and some African regions. It is endemo-epidemic in tropical and subtropical countries included between 25 degrees north latitude and 25 degrees south latitude, particularly in southeast Asia and epidemic in the Caribbean, West-Africa, tropical American and Pacific Islands. Further spread will depend on the invasion of Aedes aegypti into new areas in South America. Maintenance of dengue is supported by an increasing demography, uncontrolled urbanization and climatic conditions favorable to the vectors. Spread of dengue is primarily caused by modern transportation, especially aircraft. No vaccine and no specific treatment exist so that mosquito control is the only way to reduce the incidence of dengue around the world. Dengue is, obviously, an important risk for travelers going to endemic areas.