Medical Information

lynxs — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 22:00:27 +0800

I have just noticed that there is too much bullshit circulating in this subforum. Seems to me that non medical people are passing on medical information like they know everything that there is to know about it. I know that the subforum rules and info states that this is not site for medical advice and one should be wary of the info received.

But i think that that is inadequate. We should not allow people to pass on inaccurate information as it can be misleading to people who do not know any better. I beleive that the info should be vetted and people passing unscrouplous ideas just to increase their post count should be warned.

Just my 2 cents.

Dengue Fever

lynxs — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 14:28:45 +0800

DENGUE FEVER

♦ Introduction
♦ Symptoms and signs
♦ Diagnosis
♦ Treatment
♦ Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever (DHF)
♦ Resurgance of Dengue Fever
♦ Prevention
♦ For more information
♦ References

Introduction

Dengue fever is a viral disease spread by the bite of infected mosquitoes, Aedes aegypti.
There are four types of viruses that cause dengue fever.
Infection with one of these types of viruses provides protection to only that type for life, so persons living in a dengue-endemic area can have more than one dengue infection during their lifetime.
The disease is now found in more than 100 countries in South and South-East Asia , Africa, the Americas, the Eastern Mediterranean, and the Western Pacific.

Symptoms and Signs

Dengue fever may occur from 3 to 14 days after the bite of an infected mosquito, commonly within 4 to 7 days.
It usually starts suddenly with a high fever, rash, severe headache, pain behind the eyes, and muscle and joint pain. Rash that does not blanch on pressure may also be present especially on the extremities.
The fever can be as high as 40-41 'C, and usually continues for 2-7 days. It may be accompanied by fits in children less than 6 years old. The severity of the joint pain has given dengue the name "breakbone fever".
The rash usually appears 3 to 4 days after the start of the fever.
Vomiting and loss of appetite are common.

Diagnosis

Antibody detection in blood ( Dengue IgM )(Antibodies are substances made by the body's immune system to fight a specific infection).
PCR test ( method of detecting genetic contents in the virus ) can detect dengue virus in the blood.

Treatment

Please consult your doctor. There is no specific medication.
Rest and drink plenty of fluids. Paracetamol can be taken for fever and pain relief.
Avoid aspirin in children less than 12 years.

Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever (DHF)

It's a more severe form of dengue and is caused by infection with the same viruses that cause dengue.
The initial complaints are the same as dengue fever. However, as the fever starts to subside, the individual becomes acutely unwell as a result of inflammation of small blood vessels. Symptoms include vomiting, giddiness, abdominal pain.
These small blood vessels become very leaky, and this may lead to fluid imbalance in the body, leading to shock and even death.
There is no specific medication. Hospitalization is required for dengue haemorrhagic fever and it can be treated by effective and timely fluids given intravenously. With early treatment, the death rate can be less than 1%.

Resurgance of Dengue Fever

Contributing factors:

Rapid growth of cities in tropical countries leading to overcrowding.
Increase in plastic packaging and discarded tyres is creating new breeding sites for mosquitoes.

Prevention

There is presently no vaccine to prevent dengue fever yet. However , trials are still ongoing to develop an effective dengue vaccine. Avoid mosquito bites by :

using mosquito repellents on skin and clothing.
avoiding heavily populated residential areas.
staying in air-conditioned or screened areas. Use bed nets if sleeping areas are not screened or air-conditioned.
Eliminate mosquito breeding sites:

eliminate mosquito breeding sites around homes. Discard items that can collect rain or run-off water, especially buckets, old tyres, vases, plastic containers , drums.
Regularly change the water in pet containers, bath tubs, pails and jars.

For More Information

see your paediatrician
Local Public Health Department
Local Health Clinics
Center for Disease Control and Prevention website, www.dph.gov.my or at tel : 03-88833888

References

Dengue and Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever Fact Sheet , Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Puerto Rico.
Dengue Fever , Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Puerto Rico .
Dengue, DHPE Publications.
Dengue fever, Wisconsin Department of Health and Family Services.
Disease fact sheet : Dengue and Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever, World Health Organization.
Dengue Fever/Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever, World Health Organization
Clinical Diagnosis and Assessment of Severity of Confirmed dengue Infection in Vietnamese Children : Is the WHO classification system helpful ? Cao Xuan Thank Phuong et al., Am. J. Trop. Med. Hyg., 70(2),2004,pp 172-179.
Dengue Fever , U.S. Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive Medicine, Maryland .

Source :

MyHealth Portal
http://www.myhealth.gov.my/myhealth/eng/ka...d=1191308494164

Last Updated 7th March 2008

[addedon]February 1, 2009, 2:34 pm[/addedon]

Dengue/DHF
Fact Sheet on Dengue Fever and Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever

General
Recognition of Dengue Fever
Recognition of Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever and Shock
Treatment
Basic Facts on Dengue
Prevention of Dengue
Prevent Mosquito Bites
Prevention Multiplication of Mosquitoes
Always Remember

GENERAL
Dengue is an acute fever caused by a virus. It occurs in two forms:

1. Dengue Fever

2. Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever

Dengue fever is marked by the onset of sudden high fever, severe headache and pain behind the eyes, muscles and joints.

Dengue Haemorrhagic fever (DHF) is a more severe form, in which bleeding and sometimes shock occurs – leading to death. It is most serious in children. Symptoms of bleeding usually occur after 3-5 days of fever.

The high fever continues for five to six days (103 – 105 OF or 39- 40 OC). It comes down on the third or the fourth day but rises again. The patient feels much discomfort and is very weak after the illness.

Dengue spreads rapidly and may affect large number of people during an epidemic resulting in reduced work productivity, but most importantly causing the loss of lives.

RECOGNITION OF DENGUE FEVER

Sudden onset of high fever
Severe headache (mostly in the forehead)
Pain behind the eyes which worsens with eye movement
Body aches and joint pains
Nausea or vomiting

RECOGNITION OF DENGUE HAEMORRHAGIC FEVER AND SHOCK

Symptoms similar to dengue fever plus, any one of the following:

(1) Severe and continuous pain in abdomen;

(2) Bleeding from the nose, mouth and gums or skin bruising;

(3) Frequent vomiting with or without blood;

(4) Black stools, like coal tar;

(5) Excessive thirst (dry mouth)

(6) Pale, cold skin

(7) Restlessness, or sleepiness

TREATMENT
There is no specific medicine for the treatment of the disease. However proper and early treatment can relieve the symptoms and prevent complications and death. Aspirin and Brufen should be avoided in dengue fever, as it is known to increase the bleeding tendency and also it increases the stomach pain. Paracetamol can be given on medical advice. If one or more signs of Dengue Haemorrhagic fever are seen, take the patient to the hospital immediately. Give fluids to drink while transferring the patient to the hospital.

BASIC FACTS ON DENGUE

(a) How dengue spreads?

Dengue is spread by the bite of an infected mosquito Aedes aegypti. The mosquito gets the virus by biting the infected persons. The first symptoms of the disease occur about 5-7 days after an infected bite.

There is no way to tell if a mosquito is carrying the dengue virus. Therefore, people must protect themselves from all mosquito bites.

(b) Where does the mosquito live?

The mosquito rests indoors, in closets and other dark places. Outside, they rest where it is cool and shaded. The female mosquito lays her eggs in water containers in and around homes, schools and other areas in towns or villages. These eggs become adult in about 10 days.

© Where does the mosquito breed?

Dengue mosquitoes breed in stored exposed water collections. Favoured breeding places are:

Barrels, drums, jars, pots, buckets, flower vases, plant saucers, tanks, discarded bottles, tins, tyres, water cooler, etc. and a lot more places where rain-water collects or is stored.

PREVENTION OF DENGUE

All efforts of control should be directed against the mosquitoes. It is important to take control measures to eliminate the mosquitoes and their breeding places. However, the efforts should be intensified before the transmission season (during and after the rainy season) and at the time of the epidemic.

PREVENT MOSQUITO BITES:
Dengue mosquitoes bite during the daytime. Protect yourself from the bite.\

(1) Wear full sleeve clothes and long dresses to cover the limbs;

(2) Repellent – care should be taken in using repellents on small children and the elderly;

(3) Use mosquito coils and electric vapour mats during the daytime to prevent Dengue;

(4) Use mosquito nets – to protect babies, old people and others, who may rest during the day. The effectiveness of such nets can be improved by treating them with permethrin (pyrethroid insecticide). Curtains (cloth or bamboo) can also be treated with insecticide and hung at windows or doorways, to repel or kill mosquitoes.

(5) Protection of people sick with dengue – Mosquitoes become infected when they bite people who are sick with dengue. Mosquito nets and mosquito nets and mosquito coils will effectively prevent mosquitoes from biting sick people and help stop the spread of dengue

PREVENTION MULTIPLICATION OF MOSQUITOES:
Mosquitoes which spread dengue live and breed in and around houses.

Drain water from coolers, tanks, barrels, drums and buckets, etc.;
There should be no water in coolers when not in use;
Remove from the house all objects, e.g. plant saucers, etc. which have water collected in them;
Remove water from refrigerator drip pans every other day;
All stored water containers should be kept covered all the time;
Discard solid waste and objects where water collects, e.g. bottles, tins, tyres, etc.

ALWAYS REMEMBER

Dengue is a serious viral disease transmitted by the bite of the mosquito;

Dengue infection occurs in two forms: Dengue fever and Dengue Haemorrhagic Fever;

Dengue fever is a severe flu like illness that affects older children and adults but rarely causes death;

Dengue haemorrhagic fever (DHF) is a more severe form, in which bleeding and occasionally shock occur, leading to death, mostly in children;

Persons suspected of having dengue fever or DHF must see a doctor at once. Dengue haemorrhagic fever is a deadly disease and early recognition and treatment can save lives. Unless proper treatment is given promptly, the patient may go into shock and die.

Severe abdominal pains (black stools), bleeding on the skin or from the nose or gums, sweating, cold skin are danger signs. If any one of them is noticed take the patient to a hospital immediately. Give fluids to drink during transfer to the hospital;

Give nutritious food and fluids to drink to the patients;

Dengue mosquitoes bite during the day;

The patient should be kept under a mosquito net or in a screened room during the period of illness;

Screen your rooms against mosquitoes or use mosquito nets or use mosquito repellent;

Discard objects in which water collects, e.g. tins, cans, coconut shells, etc. Do not allow water to collect in pits around your houses. All stored water containers should be covered all the time. This will prevent breeding of Dengue mosquitoes, and

Doctors and health workers treating cases of dengue fever should also notify the health authorities.

SOURCE : WHO Factsheet on Dengue Fever
http://www.searo.who.int/EN/Section10/Sect...Section1631.htm

Updated : 4th August 2006

Link to PDF version : http://www.searo.who.int/LinkFiles/Fact_Sh...heet-Dengue.pdf

Specially Priced Microsoft Software for Students

lynxs — Wed, 17 Sep 2008 02:19:19 +0800

Apparently you could buy original microsoft software at crazy low prices at your university's Co-op with a copy of your student ID....

http://www.microsoft.com/malaysia/promo/studentselect/

The office suit is really cheap.....and better than the home and student one they are selling retail at almost the same price.

Are We at Fault for Getting Cheated?

lynxs — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 00:18:18 +0800

It is interesting to note how many people get conned by disreputable sellers. Even looking to LYN, there are endless stories about how some disreputable sellers have manipulated buyers.

I somehow have an opinion that disreputable sellers are brave enough to do the things that they do because they know that although the buyers know they are being conned, very few of them do anything about it. And for the few who do something, the process of law takes so long that most of them just give up somewhere along the way, because they have better things to do

Perhaps this has made some dishonest people more daring and at times overbearing towards consumers even though they are at fault (eg. Sellers scold buyers although the product itself is faulty) to make the comsumers feel small and thus powerless.

just wanted to see your opinions and perhaps some suggestions how we can empower buyers for healthy and safe trading be it online or physical retail.

Lowyat.NET: Latest topics by lynxs

Medical Information

Dengue Fever

Specially Priced Microsoft Software for Students

Are We at Fault for Getting Cheated?