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While living in Bali (Indonesia), French actress and director Mathilda May was hospitalized after contracting the dengue virus. But what is this virus? What are the symptoms ? And how to protect yourself from it?
Actress Mathilda May, known for The Owl’s Cry or The Kings of Gags, no longer has the heart to laugh. While she was enjoying the island of the gods, in the Indonesian archipelago, the actress contracted dengue fever, a tropical disease.
What is dengue fever?
Dengue is a disease transmitted by the bite of a mosquito of the genus Aedes carrier of one of the 4 dengue viruses. According the World Health Organization390 million dengue virus infections occur each year.
This infectious disease is present in all tropical regions, particularly in the French islands of the Pacific and the Indian Ocean and the DROMs, such as Guadeloupe, Martinique or Guyana.
In mainland France, the mosquito Aedes albopictus (tiger mosquito) is permanently established in 51 departments. According to the Ministry of Health and Prevention, “the risk of an autochthonous circulation of dengue following the introduction of the virus by a sick traveler is therefore possible in these departments”.
Be careful, the dengue virus is not transmitted between humans, only by means of a mosquito. “Once the person is infected, it is not contagious, neither by postilions nor by contact, the mosquito is necessary for the spread of the disease”explained Professor François Bricaire on Doctissimo in June.
What are the symptoms of dengue fever?
The symptoms of dengue appear within 3 to 14 days following the mosquito bite (4 to 7 days of incubation on average).
The symptoms are varied but most often flu-like (the first 3):
- Fever ;
- Intense headaches;
- Aches ;
- Retro-orbital pain;
- Muscle and joint pain;
- Nausea;
- Vomiting;
- Adenopathy (swollen glands);
- Rashes.
Although dengue fever is mostly mild (but debilitating), there are severe forms, which can lead to hospitalization. This was the case of Mathilda May.
On Monday July 11, the actress posted an Instagram photo from her hospital bed to give her news, taking advantage of her recovery to send a political message to her subscribers, at a time when the French health system is in crisis. .
According to the Ministry of Health and Prevention, the fight against mosquitoes is everyone’s business. Individual protection (repellent, wearing long, loose clothing, etc.) and the collective fight against mosquitoes “by destroying or drying out potential breeding grounds, which constitute any reserve of stagnant water outside or inside the home” are the best ways to stem the risk of epidemics.
“Travellers going to countries where the dengue virus circulates must take personal protective measures during the hours of mosquito activity, in this case during the day (but also during the night when there is a risk of transmission malaria). In the event of the appearance of a febrile illness during and within 7 days of returning from a stay, they must consult a doctor as soon as possible”, explains the Ministry of Health.