Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne acute systemic viral infection caused by any of the four serotypes of the dengue virus.
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Epidemiology
Dengue virus infections occur predominately in tropical and subtropical regions 3.
Clinical presentation
The infection can lead to a broad spectrum of symptoms ranging from mild, nonspecific, influenza-like prodromes to more severe forms known as:
dengue hemorrhagic fever
dengue shock syndrome
Pathology
The dengue viruses (DENV) are single-stranded RNA arboviruses that are divided into four different serotypes, nominated DENV-1, -2, -3, and -4. They belong to the family Flaviviridae and the genus Flavivirus. The primary vector for dengue viruses is Aedes mosquitos, especially A. aegypti 1.
Radiographic features
Although radiology does not play an active role in the diagnosis of dengue fever or in the assessment of mild cases, it can show typical findings related to plasma leakage in absence of serological tests. These features could play a diagnostic role 2. Described findings include 2,4:
Abdominal:
diffuse edema or diffuse gallbladder wall thickening
Thoracic 6:
pleural effusions: right-sided more common than bilateral or left-sided
pneumonitis
lung congestion
diffuse alveolar damage or acute respiratory distress syndrome (ADRS)
-
alveolar hemorrhage
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