Types of dengue: 5 common questions answered by an infectious disease specialist

There are currently 5 types of dengue, but the types present in Brazil are dengue types 1, 2 and 3, while type 4 is more common in Costa Rica and Venezuela, and type 5 (DENV-5) has been identified in 2007 in Malaysia, Asia.

All 5 types of dengue cause the same classic symptoms, which include high fever, headache, pain in the back of the eyes and extreme tiredness. Check out the main symptoms of dengue.

Due to the fact that there are several types of dengue, it is possible for a person who has already had dengue to become infected again, but this time with a new type. The more times a person is infected with dengue, the greater the risk of developing dengue hemorrhagic fever, which results from an exaggerated reaction of the body to the dengue virus, increasing the risk of bleeding and serious complications. Understand better what dengue hemorrhagic fever is and what the risks are.

Some common questions related to the types of dengue are:

1. What are the main differences?

All types of dengue are caused by the same virus, however, there are 5 small variations of this same virus. These differences are so small that they cause the same disease, with the same symptoms and the same forms of treatment.

However, type 3 (DENV-3), which is the most common in Brazil in the last 15 years, has greater virulence, which means it causes more severe symptoms than the others.

2. When did the types of dengue appear in Brazil?

Although a new dengue epidemic appears every year, most of the time it is the same type of dengue. In Brazil, the types of dengue that exist are:

• Tipo 1 (DENV-1): appeared in Brazil in 1986
• Tipo 2 (DENV-2): appeared in Brazil in 1990
• Tipo 3 (DENV-3): appeared in Brazil in 2000, being the most common until 2016
• Tipo 4 (DENV-4): appeared in Brazil in 2010 in the state of Roraima

Dengue type 5 (DENV-5) has not yet been registered in Brazil, being found only in Malaysia (Asia) in 2007.

3. Are the symptoms of dengue type 1, 2 and 3 different?

No. The symptoms of dengue are always the same, but whenever a person gets dengue more than once, the symptoms become more intense because there is an increased risk of having dengue hemorrhagic fever. Therefore, it is very important to avoid new infections, through measures that prevent the reproduction of the dengue mosquito and, consequently, bites. See how to fight mosquitoes and protect yourself from dengue.

4. Can I get dengue more than once?

Yes. Each person can get dengue up to 4 or 5 times in their life because each type of dengue, DENV-1, DENV-2, DENV-3, DENV-4 and DENV-5, refers to a variation of the original virus and, Therefore, when a person catches type 1 dengue, they develop immunity to this specific type of dengue and are no longer infected with this variation of the virus. However, if the same person is bitten by a mosquito infected with dengue type 2, they will develop the disease again and in this case, the risk of developing dengue hemorrhagic fever is greater.

5. Can I have 2 types of dengue at the same time?

Becoming infected with 2 types of dengue is not an impossible situation, however it is considered very unlikely because it would be necessary for 2 different types of dengue to be circulating in the same region and this is extremely rare. Therefore, no cases of infection by two viruses at the same time have yet been recorded.