A Russian tourist from the city of Lyubertsy has been hospitalised in Vietnam after contracting dengue fever while on holiday in the coastal city of Da Nang. The Russian digital news outlet Mash reported that the traveler fell ill after she was bitten by an infected mosquito at night while sleeping.
Following the mosquito bite, the woman experienced a high fever rising to between 39 and 40 degrees Celsius, alongside severe body aches. Fever-reducing antipyretic medications failed to improve her condition, which continued to deteriorate until she was admitted to a hospital in Vietnam. Laboratory blood tests confirmed the dengue diagnosis, prompting doctors to initiate treatment.
Lyubertsy is a major urban municipality in Moscow Oblast, situated just south-east of the Russian capital Moscow. Da Nang is one of Vietnam's largest coastal cities and a primary tourism hub in the central region of the country, known for its extensive sandy beaches and resort areas. Dengue fever is a viral tropical infection transmitted to humans through the bites of infected mosquitoes, primarily the Aedes species, in warm climates across South-East Asia. Mosquito populations surge during warmer seasons in the region, though the virus is non-contagious and does not spread directly between humans through ordinary contact.
Symptoms and severe complications
Health guidance highlighted in the report notes that dengue fever presents severe health risks even after a patient's temperature begins to drop. The critical phase of the disease can develop after the initial fever subsides, making continuous medical observation essential during recovery.
Warning signs indicating severe dengue include intense abdominal pain, persistent vomiting, mucosal bleeding, and pronounced physical weakness. If the illness worsens, it can lead to severe complications such as internal bleeding and medical shock, conditions that require urgent emergency hospital treatment.
Regional travel health alerts
The hospitalisation follows earlier health warnings issued to Russian holidaymakers traveling to other popular resort destinations in South-East Asia. Tourists heading to Thailand were previously warned that they could contract hepatitis and intestinal infections alongside rat fever, a bacterial disease also known as leptospirosis that is often spread through water or soil in tropical environments.
