Incidence and co-infection with COVID-19 of dengue during the COVID-19 pandemic
Yuan‐Pin Hung, Ching‐Chi Lee, Yingwen Chen, Jen‐Chieh Lee, Chun-Wei Chiu, Po‐Ren Hsueh, Wen‐Chien Ko
Abstract
The co-infection of dengue and COVID-19 has been regarded as a public health issue for dengue-endemic countries during the COVID-19 pandemic. Travel restrictions might decrease the chance of mosquitoes biting and, thus, reduce the risk of dengue transmission. However, the spread of dengue was reported to increase with the policies of lockdowns and social distancing in specific areas due to delayed interventions in dengue transmission. Of cases experiencing dengue and COVID-19 co-infection, most recovered after receiving supportive care and/or steroid therapy. However, some episodes of severe or fatal diseases in specific individuals, such as pregnant women, have been reported, and the clinical course of this co-infection is unrecognized or unpredictable. Accordingly, it is crucial to promptly identify predictors of developing severe viral diseases among co-infection patients.