Dengue Fever

Living in Hong Kong or travelling within the region exposes one to Dengue Fever.

View large image Dengue fever (pronounced den-gee where the "g" is hard) is a severe flu-like illness characterised by high fever, severe headache, pain behind the eyes, rash, joint and muscular pain. Dengue hemorrhagic fever is a potentially fatal complication characterised by high fever, haemorrhagic phenomena, and in severe cases, circulatory failure. Given the severity of the disease, it makes sense to reduce breeding sites. As part of the campaign, posters such as this have been slapped up all over the territory:

View large image It's not my intent to scare anyone away from Hong Kong. The best way to avoid dengue fever is to wear a long-sleeved shirt, long pants (which is hard to do when it gets hot), and liberal amounts of insect repellent. This applies to those frequenting country parks or rural areas where mosquitoes breed in greater numbers.

Those who have had dengue will be the first to tell you how much it sucks.

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