Serological and Epidemiological Picture of Dengue during the Year 2014: An Exclusive Study of Kutch District, Gujarat, India

Dengue is a flavivirus transmitted by Aedes aegypti mosquito. Dengue virus infection has emerged as a notable public health problem in recent decades in term of the mortality and morbidity associated with it (Ukey et al., 2010; WHO, 1997). Dengue is a major problem in many parts of India and large outbreaks are reported from various parts of India and abroad (George et al., 1975; Kaur et al., 1997). The clinical picture of dengue mimics many other viral illnesses, which makes laboratory confirmation very crucial for the patient management. The benefits of early diagnosis of dengue fever go beyond treatment and encase epidemiological efforts. For diagnosis of dengue cases many tests such as virus isolation, RNA, Antigen and antibody detection methods are available (Chakravarti et al., 2006). However virus isolation, RNA detection by PCR, requires well trained staff and dedicated set up which is not feasible in most of the health centers in India. In most of the cases detection of IgM antibody is used for diagnosis of dengue infection. However time required for appearance of IgM antibody is approximately 4-6 days (WHO, 1997). Dengue non-structural 1 antigen (NS1) is highly conserved glycoprotein produced in International Journal of Current Microbiology and Applied Sciences ISSN: 2319-7706 Volume 6 Number 5 (2017) pp. 2100-2106 Journal homepage: http://www.ijcmas.com