The Sickness Lurking in the Shadows!
Dengue in the times of the pandemic!
Being a tropical country, there is always a risk of tropical diseases in India. Mosquito-borne diseases are quite common in the country, especially in the post-monsoon season. Usually, there are precautions taken by the respective authorities to avoid the spread of these diseases. But, with the pandemic raging there is already a lot of burden on the healthcare system. While taking all the precautions to avoid COVID-19, we fell prey to the disease that lurks in the shadows! Dengue fever, the mosquito-borne illness stung us this year! Here is the story of our battle with this sickness in the times of the deadly pandemic!
Dengue fever is mosquito-borne
Dengue is a viral disease that spreads rapidly through the female Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. These mosquitoes are daytime feeders, biting in the early morning, and dusk. Females usually bite multiple people during each feeding period. The mosquitoes mate, feed, rest, and lay eggs in and around urban human habitation, in clean water. Dengue virus exists in four serotypes and may produce only mild sickness, occasionally it develops into potentially lethal complications, called severe dengue.
Dengue vs COVID-19
We took all the precautions to avoid COVID-19, but we ignored dengue. It’s not as if we forgot about Dengue. We were quite aware of the Dengue season. News of its spread and causalities dotted the headlines. But, somehow we were ensconced in our complacency. After all, we lived in a clean surrounding. There were no puddles of stagnant water. We used mosquito repellants at night. But, in the end, all it takes is one mosquito to circumvent all the traps.
One day, my daughter complained of exhaustion and looked sick. She had been working hard so I assumed she was just tired. She spent the night feeling uncomfortable and sleepless. By the next morning, she had a high fever. I immediately contacted a pathology lab for a blood test. They conducted diagnostic tests for all types of fever, except COVID-19. Within a few hours, she was diagnosed with Dengue. I started giving her antipyretics and searched for medical help. But due to the pandemic, no specialist doctor was available. Finally, we got an appointment with a physician, who was unconvinced with the Dengue diagnosis, contending that her platelet count was quite high. He advised conducting a COVID-19 test along with platelet counts. The test came negative with high platelets count.
By this time, my daughter had run a high fever for two days straight. The antipyretics were not working. All my efforts to reduce the fever, including cold water bandages on the forehead and extremities were in vain. Apart from the fever, she complained of an excessive ache in the backbone, joints, eyes, and back of the eye sockets along with occasional nausea. With almost nothing working, we decided to go to a nearby hospital.
Fighting Dengue in the times of the pandemic
We admitted her to a missionary hospital. By that time, her fever was almost gone. But, she started internal bleeding due to the reduced platelets. She was transferred to critical care. The hospital had a strict policy to not let anyone beyond the outpatient area without a negative report for COVID-19. It was quite an ordeal for us parents to get the test and visit her in critical care. The critical care was full of Dengue patients with varying complexity. Some had multi-organ failures while others had abnormally high hemoglobin. A young man had internal swelling in his kidneys and liver, with fluid seeping in his lungs. To me, this was quite shocking. I had never known that Dengue can be so dangerous even to young individuals. The doctor told me that Dengue not only affects platelets but all vital organs.
With the untired efforts of doctors and nurses, my daughter started improving after 3 days of admission. The healthcare providers in the hospital always wore PPE kits. Nobody was allowed without a mask. The hospital took extra care to prevent unnecessary crowding. Their full focus was on sanitization and cleanliness. I spent 3 days and nights in the hospital praying for my daughter to heal. Finally, she was shifted out of critical care to a normal ward after her platelets increased.
She is now back home after defeating Dengue. We have re-started our fight against COVID by confining ourselves at the house. This incident taught me the lesson to not lose focus of other contagions while staying aware of COVID-19.
Doctors and nurses — a form of divine
This may sound cliche. But, for me doctors and nurses are divine. Seeing their selfless and tireless work to save my child, I was filled with gratitude. I am also thankful for my near and dear ones whose best wishes and support in this difficult time gave me the courage and confidence to defeat Dengue.
“People pay the doctor for his trouble; for his kindness, they still remain in his debt” — Seneca, Roman philosopher.
