Delhi dengue update: 12 cases reported

The monsoon is yet to set in but 12 cases of dengue have already been reported in the national capital and its adjoining areas, municipal data revealed Monday. Nine cases are from the north, east and south Delhi municipal corporation areas, and the remaining three cases are from adjoining areas in Uttar Pradesh and Haryana. Last year, six people died due to the vector-borne disease and a total of 5,546 cases were reported from the national capital and nearby areas.

How to prevent dengue?

With the monsoon come various diseases, and one of the most severe one is dengue. Also known as 'break bone fever' it is a painful and debilitating disease spread by mosquitoes. Caused due to the bite of an infected female aedes aegypti mosquito, the disease can be fatal.

Once bitten it takes about four to ten days for the symptoms to show. The most common symptoms are high fever, severe headache, pain behind the eyes, nausea, vomiting, swollen glands, muscle and joint pain and in some cases a rash. The more severe forms of dengue are hemorrhagic fever and dengue shock syndrome. There is no clear treatment for the condition nor is there a vaccine against it, so the best way is to prevent the disease from occurring at all. Here are a few simple and practical tips to keep dengue at bay:

1. Aedes aegypti mosquitoes are known to bite humans during the day and their most common breeding grounds are man made containers. Therefore, it is advisable to not have any stagnant water around. Remember to clean out empty flower pots and not to over water potted plants. If the container that contains water cannot be emptied, remember to cover it well when not in use.
2. Turn over empty pails and buckets, so that they do not collect excess water.
3. Use mosquito repellants regularly. Apply it well on all exposed areas, during the day as well as at night.
4. Make sure your window and door screens do not have any holes. If so, block those areas properly to eliminate mosquitoes.
5. If someone at home is ill with dengue, try to not let the mosquitoes bite them or others in the house. Read more about Prevent dengue with these 10 practical tips

You may also like to read:

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• Tips to keep common monsoon diseases at bay
• Dengue fever: Symptoms, medication and prevention
• Dengue fever do not give Aspirin or Ibuprofen to the patient

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