Abstract
IntroductionCoinfections are common in pandemics, however not in recorded patients with hemoglobinopathies. The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic struck Bangladesh at the beginning of March 2020, which is also an apt period for endemic Dengue fever in this monsoon region. Case reportWe report a 30-year-old man with hemoglobinopathies coinfected with Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and Dengue virus. Dengue virus was detected by Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA). COVID-19 was confirmed by Reverse-transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR) and Hemoglobin Electrophoresis revealed heterozygous beta-thalassemia or thalassemia trait. The patient was treated successfully at Dhaka Hospital in icddr,b during COVID-19 emergency response with symptomatic supportive treatment for COVID-19 and appropriate fluid therapy for dengue fever in response to daily hematocrit level. The patient's repeated RT-PCR for COVID-19 on day-21 became negative. For thalassemia, the patient was advised to have genetic counseling and family screening on discharge. ConclusionThe possibility of coinfection between COVID-19 and Dengue fever may be considered in a COVID-19 patient with unremitting fever especially in an area where Dengue fever is epidemic that may further help to attain appropriate management of the patient.
Highlights
Coinfections are common in pandemics, not in recorded patients with hemoglobinopathies
Detection of Dengue virus: The patient's serum was tested by Enzyme-linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) at icddr,b serodiagnostic laboratory according to the manufacturer's instructions for anti-dengue IgM and IgG [28]
Notable two cases of COVID-19 and Dengue fever coinfection from Dengue epidemic regions like Thailand and Singapore have been identified to date from a comprehensive literature review and in our knowledge [14, 15]
Summary
Coinfections are common in pandemics, not in recorded patients with hemoglobinopathies. The Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic struck Bangladesh at the beginning of March 2020, which is an apt period for endemic Dengue fever in this monsoon region. Case report: We report a 30-year-old man with hemoglobinopathies coinfected with Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and Dengue virus. Pandemic disease with an infectious agent alone can cause substantial deaths, but when associated with other co-infection mortalities is enormously high. Patients were vulnerable to coinfection between other species along with causative respiratory viral pathogen, which led to increased disease severity and death [1]. After a century since the Spanish Flu, coinfection remains potentially lethal during the recent 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), which was emerged from Wuhan, China [2, 3]. 71% of admitted COVID-19 patients received antimicrobial treatment, empirically, to prevent secondary or co-infection, despite species’
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