How Dengue Fever Can Impact Your Brain And Nervous System?
Dengue is a vector-borne disease spread by the bite of female mosquitoes Aedes aegypti. These female mosquitoes bite to obtain protein from the human body which is very crucial in the egg development of the mosquito and during this process, the female mosquitoes transmit the virus into the human body. These mosquitoes are mostly active before sunrise and sunset. However, these mosquitoes can bite at night as well. They use natural habitats and places like plants, flower pots, algae, water tanks, and containers to hide and lay eggs. The life span of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes is not more than three weeks. Aedes aegypti mosquitoes are the primary suspects in the spread of dengue fever, chikungunya, Zika virus, and yellow fever.
Symptoms of Dengue Fever
If you have any of the symptoms given below, you may have dengue fever
- pain in the abdomen area
- Fever
- red spots on the skin
- severe headache
- Vomiting
- nausea
- fatigue
- swollen glands
How does dengue fever affect your brain and nervous system?
Dengue fever negatively affects our brain and nervous system. It starts from the bite of a female mosquito Aedes aegyptys when the virus spreads throughout the body through a bloodstream. The virus first affects the cells of our body's immune system specifically in the lymph node. The immune system releases a several cytokines. Cytokines are a type of protein that fights against the dengue virus and protects our body. The sudden response of the immune system aggravates symptoms like inflammation, swellings, irritation, and damage to various brain tissues. Dengue fever weakens the blood-brain barrier, which is a protective layer of the brain that prevents harmful substances from entering the brain. Dengue virus significantly infects our neurons (brain cells) which damages our brain and our brain is unable to function properly. Dengue virus can cause life-threatening complications such as encephalitis (inflammation in the brain), meningitis (inflammation of the brain and spinal cord), and myelitis (inflammation in the spinal cord).