Dengue or Japanese encephalitis?

Abstract

Background: Dengue and Japanese encephalitis are considered as one of the most common arbovirus diseases in tropics. Dengue virus has a wide spectrum of presentation starting from the classical dengue fever to dengue encephalitis and dengue shock syndrome. Moreover, Japanese encephalitis, which is one of the major public health problems in most of the South East Asian countries including India, may present with similar clinical picture mimicking dengue encephalitis. Case Report: We report the case of a 34 year old male patient who presented to the emergency department with complaints of fever and subsequently developed altered mental status. Investigations of the patient revealed dengue NS1 antigen positive but Magnetic Resonance Imaging findings were suggestive of Japanese encephalitis. Conclusion: Here, we discuss the likelihood of DengueJapanese encephalitis co-infection in endemic countries where both dengue and Japanese encephalitis are common.