COURTESY DURRELL KAPAN / UH-MANOA
The Asian tiger Mosquito
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The state Department of Health is awaiting test results in two possible cases of mosquito-borne dengue fever on the Big Island.
“We hope to receive the results sometime next week,” spokeswoman Janice Okubo said Monday. The DOH received reports on the cases last week.
Meanwhile the individuals are recovering at home, and assessments of their living spaces and workplaces have found no mosquito activity.
Dengue is spread by infected mosquitoes, but not from person to person. So far this year there have been 13 confirmed cases in Hawaii. There were 14 cases last year.
Symptoms include sudden fever; severe headaches; eye, joint and muscle pain; and a rash. Symptoms usually start five or six days after being bitten by an infected mosquito. There is no vaccine for the virus, and bed rest and acetaminophen are recommended to treat fever and pain, the Health Department said.
In the two Big Island cases, the DOH is also testing for chikungunya and zika — viruses similar to dengue that are also transmitted to a person by a bite from an infected mosquito.