The First Outbreak of Dengue Fever in Greater Darfur, Western Sudan.

Ayman Ahmed, Adel Elduma, Babiker Magboul, Tarig Higazi, Yousif Ali

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

42 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Dengue virus (DENV) is an arthropod-borne virus (arbovirus) transmitted by the mosquitoes, mainly . Dengue fever is a rapidly growing disease with expanding geographical distribution worldwide. We investigated a high number of non-malaria febrile cases reported to health clinics in refugee camps in the five states of Darfur between August 2015 and March 2016. The clinical presentation of cases and case definition criteria suggested involvement of one or more arboviral hemorrhagic fevers. Out of 560 suspected cases, we collected and analyzed 204 blood samples and serologically positive samples were confirmed by PCR. We identified 32 (15.7%) dengue viral infections, six West Nile virus infections, and three Crimean⁻Congo viral infections. Dengue infections were found in four out of the five Darfur states. We reported the first dengue fever outbreak in the Darfur region. Our results highlight the need for public health education and further molecular, phylogenetic, and entomological investigations for a better understanding of the disease transmission and the associated risk factors in the region.

Original languageEnglish
Article number43
JournalTropical Medicine and Infectious Disease
Volume4
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Mar 2019

Keywords

  • Aedes aegypti
  • Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF)
  • Dengue
  • Emergence
  • Epidemic
  • Greater Darfur
  • Hemorrhagic fever
  • Outbreak
  • Sudan
  • West Nile virus (WNV)

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