According to data from the National Vector Borne Disease Control Programme, DGHS, there were 157220 cases of Dengue last year, over a 5.5-fold increase from 2010 to 2017. Deaths due to dengue infection have more than doubled over the same period.
Routine testing for Dengue is done using ElISA to detect Nonstructural protein 1 (NS1), IgM and IgG. NS1 can be used for detection in the first five days after infection while IgM is detected only after three to five days of illness in cases of primary infection and persists for two or three months. IgG may appear in the same time-frame but persists life-long.
However, IgM/IgG detection is not very specific for dengue and may cause false positives due to cross-reactivity with other Flaviviruses.
Additionally, none of these assays can be used for serotyping.