Bedside table: thermometer, paracetamol packet, water glass, rehydration sachet — The correct dengue sick-day kit: fluids, paracetamol, a thermometer. No ibuprofen, no aspirin, until dengue is ruled out.

DISEASE FILE · GRADE C: WHO FACT SHEET, 2025-05 REVISION

Dengue warning signs that mean hospital, now.

Most dengue is mild and self-limiting. The danger window opens when fever starts to drop. Know the six before that moment. The six signs · The full course, day by day

Warning signs: any one means seek care now

These mark the shift toward severe dengue. They typically appear as fever falls, three to seven days after symptoms start. Do not wait for more than one.

SIGN 01

Severe abdominal pain

Persistent, not cramp-like.

SIGN 02

Persistent vomiting

More than occasional.

SIGN 03

Rapid breathing

Restless, labored, or both.

SIGN 04

Bleeding gums or nose

Also black stools, easy bruising.

SIGN 05

Restlessness or drowsiness

A marked change in behavior.

SIGN 06

Vomiting blood

Or blood in stool. Emergency.

Until dengue is ruled out, avoid ibuprofen and aspirin. They raise bleeding risk. Paracetamol per label is the usual choice for fever. This page never carries product links; it points to care.

WHO dengue fact sheet, May 2025 revision, checked 2026-09. How we grade

THE QUESTION PEOPLE ACTUALLY TYPE

How do I know if dengue is serious? Watch for severe abdominal pain, persistent vomiting, rapid breathing, gum or nose bleeding, restlessness or drowsiness, and vomiting blood. Any one of these, especially as fever falls, means seek care now.

WHO dengue fact sheet, 2025-05, checked 2026-09

The numbers, in context

Scale, spread and the vector, each with its source.

FACT	VALUE	SOURCE
Reported cases, 2024	14,434,584	WHO WER 2025 no. 52
Reported deaths, 2024	11,201	WHO WER 2025 no. 52
Annual infections, estimated	100-400 million	WHO, 2025-05
Countries with transmission risk	100+	WHO, 2025-05
Incubation after the bite	4-10 days	WHO, 2025-05
Primary vectors	Aedes aegypti, albopictus	WHO, 2025-05
Vector flight range	~100 meters	CDC biology profile
Egg-to-adult, summer water	7-10 days	WHO dengue guidelines ch. 2

All rows checked 2026-09. Vaccine availability and travel guidance vary by country and change; this page links WHO and CDC as the living sources rather than freezing them.

2024 was the highest dengue year on record

The Americas carried more than 90% of cases reported to WHO. Brazil alone passed ten million.

PLACE	2024 REPORTED CASES
World, to WHO	14,434,584 cases · 11,201 deaths · 112 countries
Region of the Americas	more than 90% of the global total
Brazil	over 10 million cases · 6,321 deaths
Argentina, Mexico, Colombia	581,559 · 558,846 · 320,982

WHO global dengue surveillance dashboard

WHO Weekly Epidemiological Record, 2025, 100(52). Checked 2026-09.