Public awareness campaign
Dengue awareness
One day in every three — tip the standing water out
Dengue can be prevented. Destroy mosquito breeding sites, know the symptoms, and go to hospital without delay if a warning sign appears. Your awareness keeps your family and your neighbourhood safe.
What dengue is and how it spreads
Dengue is a viral fever. It spreads through the bite of an infected female Aedes mosquito — never directly from one person to another.
Aedes is easy to recognise: a black body and legs with white stripes. It lays eggs in clean water standing in and around homes, and bites most in the early morning and before dusk.
Break the cycle
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4–10 days
From the bite to the first symptoms
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2–7 days
How long the fever usually lasts
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4 types
Four virus types — you can get dengue more than once
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3 days
Never let water stand anywhere longer than this
Symptoms of dengue
Suspect dengue — and get a blood test — when a sudden high fever comes with any two of these.
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Sudden high fever
Up to 102–104°F (39–40°C)
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Severe headache
Mostly across the forehead
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Pain behind the eyes
Worse when the eyes move
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Muscle and joint pain
Deep aches in muscles, bones and joints
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Nausea and vomiting
Often with loss of appetite
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Skin rash
May appear a few days into the fever
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Extreme tiredness
A heavy, drained feeling
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Fever? Get tested
Ask for NS1 and CBC tests in the first 1–3 days of fever.
The three phases of the illness
The most dangerous time in dengue is not while the fever is high — it is the 24 to 48 hours after it comes down.
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Days 1–3
Fever phase
High fever, headache and body pain. Rest, drink plenty and get a blood test.
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Days 4–6
Critical phase
The fever falls but the risk is at its highest. Watch for warning signs and stay in touch with a doctor.
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After day 7
Recovery phase
Appetite returns and you feel better. Weakness can last a few weeks — keep resting and eating well.
Warning signs: go to hospital at once
If any one of these appears as the fever falls or afterwards, do not lose a moment.
- Severe stomach pain
- Vomiting again and again
- Bleeding from the nose or gums
- Blood in vomit or stool, or black stool
- Difficult or fast breathing
- Restlessness or unusual drowsiness
- Cold, pale, clammy hands and feet
- Passing very little urine
Take extra care: Take children, the elderly, pregnant women and anyone with diabetes, high blood pressure, heart or kidney disease to a doctor as soon as fever starts.
Where Aedes mosquitoes breed
A spoonful of standing water is enough for Aedes to lay eggs. Look for these places in and around your own home.
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Flower pots and their saucers
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Discarded tyres
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Coconut shells
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Thrown-away bottles, cans and bags
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Open drums, buckets and water tanks
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Trays under ACs and fridges
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Rooftops and construction sites
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Blocked drains and roof gutters
How to prevent dengue
The best protection is to stop mosquitoes breeding and to avoid being bitten.
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01
Empty standing water
Every three days, tip out water collected in and around your home and turn containers upside down.
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02
Cover stored water
Keep drums, buckets and tanks tightly covered, and scrub them clean once a week.
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03
Sleep under a net
Use a mosquito net for daytime naps and at night — above all for children, the elderly and the sick.
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04
Cover your skin
Wear long sleeves, long trousers and socks. Light colours are better.
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05
Use repellent
Apply mosquito repellent cream or spray to exposed skin.
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06
Screen doors and windows
Fit screens, or keep doors and windows shut around dawn and dusk.
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07
Clear dark corners
Mosquitoes rest under beds, behind curtains and between furniture.
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08
Clean up together
Once a week, clean the neighbourhood with your neighbours. One clean house is not enough.
What to do when fever starts
Do
- Rest completely
- Drink plenty — oral saline, coconut water, fruit juice, soup
- For fever take only paracetamol, as a doctor advises
- Get a blood test early in the fever (NS1, CBC)
- See a doctor and keep going back for follow-up
- Keep the patient under a net so mosquitoes cannot spread it
Do not
- No aspirin, ibuprofen or diclofenac — they raise the risk of bleeding
- No antibiotics or steroids on your own
- Do not relax when the fever drops — that is the riskiest time
- Do not cut down on fluids
- Do not wait at home once a warning sign appears
Myths and facts
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Myth
Aedes mosquitoes breed in dirty water.
FactAedes lays its eggs in clean standing water — pots, tyres, drums and the like.
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Myth
Aedes only bites in the daytime.
FactIt bites most around dawn and before dusk, but can bite at night too where there is light.
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Myth
Once you have had dengue you are safe.
FactThere are four virus types. A second infection carries a higher risk of severe illness.
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Myth
Papaya leaf juice cures dengue.
FactThis is not proven. Care for dengue means rest, enough fluids and a doctor's supervision.
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Myth
Low platelets always mean a transfusion.
FactMost patients never need platelets. That decision belongs to the doctor.
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Myth
Dengue spreads from person to person.
FactIt does not spread by touch — only through the bite of an infected Aedes mosquito.
Is my home dengue-free?
Give it ten minutes once a week. Tick each job as you finish it.
Emergency help
Pass this on — one share can make one more family aware.
This page is for public awareness, based on general guidance from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Directorate General of Health Services. It does not replace a doctor's advice. If you have a fever, see a registered doctor.