Doctors treating a Brit woman after contracting a “break-bone fever” in the south of France warned climate change could make it spread to Britain, reports Sky News.
The 44-yr-old woman contracted the mosquito-borne disease dengue while visiting family near Nice last September and developed a fever, muscle aches, headache and rash.
An immediate sample was sent to the Rare Imported Pathogens Laboratory, who confirmed that she had an acute dengue virus infection.
The woman, whose name was not given by the doctors, did not require treatment, reports Sky News.
Her case was presented at the European Congress of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases.
While 75% of those infected have no symptoms, 1% to 5% develop potentially fatal severe dengue fever.
Dr Owen Donnelly, of the Tropical Diseases Hospital in London, said: “This individual was part of an outbreak of over 30 locally transmitted cases in the south of France in 2022, which highlights the rapidly changing epidemiology of dengue,” reports Sky News.
Between June and September 2022, the Agence Regionale de Santé in France reported three separate outbreaks of the disease.
“With climate change, particularly hotter temperatures and more rainfall, and increasing global trade and tourism, we may see more parts of Europe with the right combination of factors for dengue outbreak,” warned Dr Donnelly, reports Sky News.
The World Health Organization said last week that half the world’s population is now at risk of dengue fever, with an estimated 100 million to 400 million infections a year.
Tell us your thoughts in the Facebook post and share this with your friends.