DENGUE FEVER TRENDS AND CLINICAL VARIABILITY: A PROSPECTIVE OBSERVATIONAL STUDY FROM AYUB TEACHING HOSPITAL, ABBOTTABAD

Objective: This study aims to assess the clinical features, severity, and outcomes of dengue fever (DF) cases confirmed via serological testing. The research specifically focuses on patients admitted to Ayub Teaching Hospital, a tertiary care facility located in Abbottabad, Pakistan. Methodology: This prospective observational study was conducted at Ayub Teaching Hospital, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan, involving 550 patients who were followed from the time of admission until discharge or death between July 2022 and July 2023. The patients were monitored, with admission criteria established based on identified warning signs. Data collection included demographic details, clinical presentation, and categorization of disease severity. Outcome measures focused on the duration of critical illness, hospital stay length, overall patient outcomes (discharge or mortality), and the evaluation of complications. The collected data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics software version 22.0 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY). Results: The baseline characteristics of the study population indicated a male predominance of 66.8%, with a mean age of 36.77 years. Common comorbidities included hypertension (9.3%) and diabetes mellitus (7.3%). The highest prevalence of dengue fever was observed in patients with blood group B+ (15.0%). Nonstructural protein 1 (NS1) was detected in 74.4% of the cases. Fever was reported as the primary symptom in 99.0% of instances. Notable bleeding manifestations included epistaxis, gum bleeding, and hematemesis. Severe thrombocytopenia was noted in approximately 53.20% of patients at the time of admission. Hospital metrics indicated an average length of stay of 3.36 days, with a critical illness phase lasting 1.69 days, and rare complications such as expanded dengue syndrome occurring in 3.2% of cases. Remarkably, 98.9% of patients were discharged, 0.4% were transferred, and 0.7% unfortunately succumbed to the illness. Conclusion: This study provides a detailed examination of the demographic and clinical characteristics of dengue fever (DF), highlighting a notable male predominance and fever as the most prevalent presenting symptom. The analysis indicates a relatively short duration of hospitalization, a brief critical phase, and low rates of complications. The high discharge rate reflects favorable outcomes for the majority of patients.