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A Dengue Predictive Test

AS DENGUE fever cases and deaths increase nationwide, clinical research worldwide continues search to find the ultimate predictor of impending dengue hemorrhagic fever (DHF). It is like anticipating where the road leads so that a detour can be made (hopefully it does not end in perdition like that movie The Road To Perdition).

Well, not all dengue fevers are deadly. That’s a big comfort to know, but “neglecting caution” remains lethal in this disease.

Classic dengue fever (CDF), as the World Health Organization defines it, needs only measures to support the weakened body of the patient. This allows the patient to get through as the disease takes its natural course, just like a kettle losing its steam when the burner is turned off. But, apart from neglecting to seek medical help on time, some patients tend to deteriorate.

What initially appears as CDF worsens into the blood-losing... (Read more.


This article appears in Sun-Star Cebu newspaper on 6 September 2010.

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