Dengue, a mosquito-borne viral infection, is rapidly increasing worldwide and affects over half of the world’s population in at-risk areas. Factors such as globalization, urbanization, and climate change have fueled its rapid geographical expansion. Although no indigenous dengue cases have been identified in Korea, the number of imported dengue cases has increased from travel to endemic regions. In Korea, dengue diagnosis relies mainly on detecting antidengue antibodies or viral nucleic acids using real-time polymerase chain reaction. Although specific antiviral treatments for dengue are currently unavailable, promising progress has been made in developing antiviral agents that target viral replication. Single-dose tetravalent live-attenuated dengue vaccine candidates are currently being evaluated for their safety and efficacy. Innovative vector control methods, including Wolbachia-infected and genetically modified species of Aedes mosquitos, have demonstrated promising results. Owing to the limited therapeutic options, vector control strategies remain a primary focus for preventing transmission, alongside ongoing research on antiviral drugs and vaccine development. This review provides insight into dengue fever transmission, clinical manifestations, and diagnosis.Additionally, it covers current global control measures, emerging treatment options, and the status of vaccines in development.

Background: Dengue virus (DENV) is transmitted by mosquitoes and is becoming a global threat owing to an increase in the number of cases and mortality, especially in low- and middle-income tropical countries. Rapid and easy-to-use diagnostic tests are required to differentiate dengue fever from other febrile illnesses. Methods: We evaluated the clinical performance of the ImmuneMed Dengue NS1 Ag Rapid I test (ImmuneMed, Inc.) using positive and negative sera collected from patients with confirmed DENV infection and healthy individuals, respectively. The AccuPower® ZIKV (DENV, CHIKV) multiplex real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assay (Bioneer) was used as the reference standard to confirm DENV infection. Results: One hundred DENV-positive and 161 DENV-negative samples were evaluated. Overall, the sensitivity and specificity were 100% (95% confidence interval [CI], 96%–100%) and 100% (95% CI, 98%–100%), respectively. The sensitivity and specificity were 100% for both DENV-1 and DENV- 2. The sensitivity was the same (100%) for sera collected ＜ 3 days and ≥ 3 days from symptom onset. The performance of the ImmuneMed Dengue NS1 Ag Rapid I and realtime RT-PCR tests showed strong overall agreement. Conclusion The ImmuneMed Dengue NS1 Ag Rapid I test was highly specific for DENV and as sensitive as RT-PCR. These findings suggest that the ImmuneMed Dengue NS1 Ag Rapid I test may be a useful point-of-care test for dengue fever.