From Cayman Islands Public Health department

While a regional and international outbreak of dengue continues, the Public Health Department has committed to providing the Cayman Islands public with updates on the local situation.

• Since the last advisory on dengue fever issued January 8, 2019, there have been 19 investigations.
• A total of 13 results have been received.
• Six results are pending
• Of the total numbers of results received, none were positive for dengue.
• The results also yielded negative for chikungunya and Zika respectively.

Officials will provide updates on a monthly basis until the outbreak is over, increasing the frequency as required by the situation.

Sidebar: More about Dengue Fever

Most people recover without any complications, using pain relievers and bed rest. Once a patient has developed a fever, the infectious period lasts for one week only.

Dengue symptoms include:

• Severe frontal headache

• Joint pain

• Pain behind the eyes

• Muscle and or bone pain

• A rash (sometimes) may be visible two to five days after the onset of fever

• Nausea or vomiting (sometimes)

Signs of bleeding (such as: pinpoint red or purple spots on the skin, nosebleed,

bleeding gums, blood in urine or stool, or vaginal bleeding) are seen in a severe form of dengue fever, known as dengue haemorrhagic fever, severe dengue or dengue shock syndrome.