Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists
Abstract
Dengue is responsible for upwards of 50 million infections per year worldwide; however, given that asymptomatic infection is possible, the true incidence is thought to be far higher. The virus is emerging or re-emerging in many regions of the world, including Australia, where episodic outbreaks occur in North Queensland. With a changing future climate, household water storage and mosquito distribution could affect outbreak frequency and the geographic distribution of this virus. Virology Dengue viruses (DENV) are enveloped viruses in the family Flaviviridae; genus Flavivirus. The genome is positive-sense, single-stranded RNA, which encodes seven non-structural proteins (including NS1, which is used for laboratory testing – see below) and three structural proteins
