PLHIV with Dengue
A PLHIV who I have the privilege of assisting more than a year ago, two nights ago texted me that he had more than 38 degrees of body temperature. He was on his way to the hospital and wanted to be admitted. He already told his HIV doctor about his possible confinement. That night he wasn't admitted as the hospital was completely full. He just continued his antipyretic medicines at home.
The following day, he texted me again and he went to another hospital. He was soon got admitted and they suspected that it was viral based on his CBC result. Later on he was diagnosed of having dengue. I told him to tell keep on updating his HIV doctor about his condition. He was still in good spirit as his attending doctor asked him if he wanted to take the HIV test too. Jokingly, I told him to show his ARV's to him. Well, sometimes it's nice to make people smile.
Early today, he told me that his fever has subsided but his platelet was still low so he still needed to stay in the hospital for a few more days. Luckily he decided to seek treatment fast as we all know that dengue can get worse if not given early treatment.
Like what I always tell people, be proactive about your health. We already have the virus living with us so we need to be extra careful with our surroundings. Because it has been raining in the Philippines, this is another dengue season so we all need to be cautious, inspect and clean our surroundings and watch for the signs and symptoms of dengue.
