A study on clinical profile and laboratory parameters of dengue fever patients in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India

Abstract

Introduction: Dengue fever is the most important mosquito-borne viral disease, found to be endemic in tropical and subtropical countries. In recent decades, the incidence of dengue infection has increased around the world and has become a major public health concern. Materials and Methods: The prospective study was conducted during the period from July 2018 to December 2020 at Sri Muthukumaran Medical College, Hospital & Research Institute, Chennai, India. All the Serum samples were collected with clinically suspected cases of Dengue and then it was confirmed by (NS1 antigen, IgM & IgG antibody) rapid serological test kit. All the clinical details & Hematological parameters were also recorded. Result: During the study period, a total of 434 patients were suspected to have the Dengue infection. Majority of the cases were males 268 (62%) rather than Females 166 (38%). 146 (34%) samples were found to be positive for Dengue viral infection. Fever is the most common clinical presentation which was found in all the patients, followed by headache (56%), vomiting (52%), body pain (33.2%), Myalgia (32%), Joint pain (31.5%), Dry cough (29%), Nausea (22%), Abdominal pain (20%), Diarrhea (13%), Retro orbital pain (10%), Burning Micturition (8.2%), Hemoptysis (2.7%), and Rashes (0.2%). Hematological parameters such as Thrombocytopenia were 36 (24%), followed by Leucopenia 16 (11%), and raised Hematocrit 11 (7.2%). Conclusions: Study has revealed that clinical manifestation is varied considerably from fever, myalgia to life threatening situations like dengue hemorrhagic fever or dengue shock syndrome if not treated on time. Therefore, early recognition and prompt management is required to decrease the morbidity and mortality of illness. Keywords: Clinical profile, Dengue fever, Laboratory parameter.