Tiger mosquito: a worrying number of dengue fever cases in France

There dengue fever is an infectious disease transmitted to humans by mosquitoes of the genus Aedes, the most common being tiger mosquito. Its proliferation on French territory in recent years is responsible for hundreds of contaminations in 2022 according to the latest report from Public health France of July 11, 2023. Tiger mosquitoes can also transmit viruses such as chikungunya (23 cases) or Zika (6 cases).

Since 2006, surveillance of cases of infections by arbovirus (dengue, chikungunya, Zika) is put in place to limit the risk of transmission. The numbers of cases identified include imported and indigenous contamination. It is the latter that worry the experts in particular. As a reminder, a transmission is said native when the patient has not traveled to an area where the virus circulates strongly but has been bitten by an infected mosquito. In France, 9 Indigenous transmissions of dengue fever were documented last year.

What are the symptoms of dengue fever?

Dengue fever is usually mild with flu-like symptoms. It regresses in a few days. However, for some people, the disease progresses to a more serious form, this is called dengue hemorrhagic fever which can be fatal. In the event of a bite, the symptoms to watch out for are:

• abdominal pain
• persistent vomiting
• mucous membrane bleeding
• lethargy

There is currently no cure or vaccine for dengue fever.

Source : Public health France