At the same event, the Head of the Indonesian Internal Disease Specialists Association (Perhimpunan Spesialis Penyakit Dalam Indonesia – “PAPDI”) Adult Immunization Task Force, Dr. dr. Sukamto Koesnoe, Sp.PD-KAI, FINASIM, reported that adults who have previously had dengue infections tend to suffer from a more severe condition when reinfected. “Because they already have antibodies from the previous illness, when they get reinfected, their bodies respond by causing even worse inflammation. In this condition, people suffering from comorbidity and/or obesity will have quite a high risk of heart or kidney failure, which makes it hard to treat them,” he declared.
Clinically, the number of thrombocytes is not the true danger signal of dengue infection. “So far, people only focus on the number of thrombocytes, while we actually need to be wary when the number of hematocrits increase when determining the patient’s prognosis, as high hematocrits can cause plasma leakage, and that worsens the disease. With vaccination, the risk of higher severity is lowered. I need to remind you that anyone can catch the dengue, no matter what their age, sex, or socio-economic status may be. By taking the vaccine and maintaining the hygiene of their living space and environs, people can limit the infection greatly, as the mosquito is able to infect people within a 100 meter radius. If we all consistently do this, I am optimistic that we can achieve the target of total zero dengue death per 2030,” dr. Sukamto said.
Read: Dengue fever- Higher risk of infection in obese children
Finally, dr. Imran emphasizes the need to physically prevent dengue infection by wearing mosquito repellent outdoors, and by sleeping under a mosquito net to avoid getting bitten by the mosquito in the first place. (est)