Salman Khan recovering from Dengue: what are the symptoms and when should you get tested for the viral infection?

Many pockets of the country are witnessing a Dengue surge this year. Most significantly, there is a dengue spiral across the country with unusual symptoms being reported from focal areas. Experts have warned that patients should not ignore symptoms and go for timely testing and diagnosis.
When should a person get tested for Dengue?
According to Dr Atul Gogia from Sir Gangaram Hospital, once the person has symptoms suggestive of Dengue one can do Dengue NS1 antigen any time from the first day of symptoms to the next four to five days. Dengue IgM serology test should be done after four to five days of illness as the timing of the test is important.

What are the common symptoms of Dengue?
Dr Gogia says highlights that the predominant symptoms are high-grade fever, severe body aches, and headache, pain behind the eyeballs. The person may have nausea vomiting and decreased oral intake along with skin rashes and May be itching. Some complicated patients may have low BP and bleed from various sites, Gogia says.
Why you should seek healthcare early in case of dengue?
“ and large, there is no reason for panic. However, it is extremely important to seek healthcare early,” says Dr Parikshit Prayag, infectious diseases expert at Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital. When the hidden dengue virus gets diagnosed at the very end, it inevitably ends up causing other health problems.

The onset involves an acute febrile illness between two and seven days, with symptoms like headache, retro-orbital pain, myalgia, arthralgia, rash and haemorrhagic manifestations. These need to be monitored carefully. The phase of febrile illness is one where fever can last for a week after which most people recover. There will be post-viral convalescence and the patient has weakness and fatigue.
Given that Covid-19 and dengue are circulating in the city simultaneously, Dr Rommel Tickoo, Director of Internal Medicine, Max Healthcare, warned against people popping any pain-killers without consulting a doctor. “With Covid-19, many people do take painkillers without consulting a doctor, but that can be dangerous if they have dengue. Combiflam and painkillers such as Diclofenac can increase the risk of internal bleeding and affect the liver. Paracetamol is the only medicine they should take for the fever,” said Dr Tickoo.