CodyMD AI Doctor Grand Rounds
25 year-old woman who presents with rash, fever, headaches, body aches, and eye pain
CodyMD
Published February 10, 2026
Introduction: AI Doctor Case Study
I am Dr. Albert DiPiero, MD MPH FACP, your host for this edition of Cody Grand Rounds.
CodyMD, at https://cody.md is a partnership between Human Doctors and AI Doctors. Cody is an AI Doctor who helps for thousands of people a day around the world.
At each Cody Grand Grounds, I select a real case and review it with Cody, the AI Doctor, just like I do with human doctors, residents, and medical students.
Each case presented in Cody Grand Round, is based on a real patient has been modified to maintain privacy and to emphasize certain teaching points.
Common Questions
How is dengue fever diagnosed?
Dengue fever is diagnosed through blood tests that detect the virus or antibodies to it. Healthcare providers typically look for the presence of dengue virus RNA, NS1 antigen, or specific dengue antibodies (IgM and IgG).
What does dengue fever look like?
Dengue fever symptoms include a sudden high fever, severe headache, pain behind the eyes, joint and muscle pain, rash, and mild bleeding (such as nose or gum bleeding). The rash may appear 2-5 days after the fever starts, showing as red spots on the skin.
Is dengue fever contagious?
Dengue fever is not directly contagious from person to person. It spreads through the bite of an infected Aedes mosquito, which transmits the virus from one person to another.
Does dengue fever go away?
Yes, dengue fever typically resolves on its own within 1-2 weeks. However, medical attention is important to manage symptoms and prevent complications. Severe cases can lead to dengue hemorrhagic fever or dengue shock syndrome, which require immediate medical care.
What else looks like dengue fever?
Several illnesses can resemble dengue fever due to their overlapping symptoms. These include Zika virus, chikungunya, malaria, typhoid fever, leptospirosis, and influenza. Accurate diagnosis often requires laboratory testing to differentiate between these conditions.
Chat with Cody
Case 1: 25 year-old woman who presents with rash, headaches, fever, body aches, and eye pain.
History of Present Illness
Susan (not his real name) is a 25 year old woman with no previous medical conditions who has otherwise been fine, when about 5 days ago she began to have headaches, fever, body aches, and eye pain.
Dr DiPiero:
At this point the differential diagnosis is very broad. Given symptoms, the patient's age and overall good previous health, an acute infection is most likely. But I would need to know the time course of the symptoms, the details of the symptoms, and any additional symptoms including the presence or absence of diarrhea, blood in the stool, and any systemic symptoms, plus her social history including diet and travel.
Susan reports her symptoms began fairly rapidly about 5 days ago, starting with headaches, fever, body aches, and eye pain, just as she was returning to the US from a vacation in Mexico. The fever spikes to 102 F twice per day. Susan then developed a generalized faint rash that appeared after the other symptoms and is getting worse. She also reports pain when she moves her eyes.
Dr. DiPiero:
[Case study continues - see full article]
