A DEBILITATING ‘sloth’ fever has been discovered in the US for the first time.
The Oropouche virus has been reported in 11 people in Florida, according to the state health department.
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All cases had recently returned from travelling in Cuba – where the disease is spreading for the first time.
It comes just days after Europe reported its first cases of the bug in Spain, Italy and Germany.
The disease is mainly spread by mosquito and midgey bites and originates in sloths – hence the nickname: ‘sloth fever’.
Currently, there is no evidence to suggest the virus can spread between people.
Read more on ‘sloth’ fever
There are also no vaccines to treat the virus, which comes from the same family of diseases that includes Zika virus and Dengue Fever.
Health chiefs at the US Centre for Disease Control (CDCD) have warned pregnant people to reconsider non-essential travel to Cuba.
It comes as new data suggests the virus could lead to miscarriage and/or birth defects in pregnant women.
“If travel is unavoidable, pregnant travellers should strictly follow Oropouche virus prevention recommendations to prevent insect bites during travel,” it said.
More than 8,000 cases of Oropouche were reported in Latin America between January 1 and August 1.
So far, the majority of cases have been reported in Brazil, but the virus has also been detected in Bolivia, Colombia and Peru.
Cuba’s Ministry of Public Health of Cuba first reported Oropouche cases on May 27.
Since then a total of 74 cases have been confirmed – the majority of them in the provinces of Santiago de Cuba and Songo La Maya.
HOW TO STAY SAFE
Travellers heading to countries where the virus is circulating have been warned by Prof Francois Balloux director of the University College London’s Genetics Institute to “take precautions”.
“Since, Oropouche is transmitted by mosquitos, the best way to protect oneself is to take precautions to reduce insect bites,” he previously told the Sun.
This includes wearing long-sleeved clothes, using mosquito nets and using insect repellent that contains DEET.
However, Dr Marine J Petit, a virologist from the University of Surrey cautioned that standard insect repellents and mosquito nets might not completely “do the trick”.
This is because the virus can also be spread by tiny midges, which can “slip through the nets and might not be bothered by the usual repellents,” she told the Sun.
“My advice will be to monitor symptoms, which may appear in a week’s time following the bite by infected midges or mosquitoes,” she explained.
Symptoms of Oropouche fever are similar to dengue and include headache, fever, muscle aches, stiff joints, nausea, vomiting, chills, or sensitivity to light.
Severe cases may result in brain diseases such as meningitis, a brain swelling disease.
She also warned Brits travelling to affected countries to avoid cities where the virus has been spotted.
Should you be worried?
Prof Stephen Graham, School of Biological Sciences Infection and Immunity Theme Leader and Professor of Virus:Host Interactions, University of Cambridge, said:
“This outbreak is unusual in its broad geographic spread.
“It’s also very unusual in the fact that we have observed the first recorded cases of mortality from Oropouche virus infection – two women in their 30s with no known co-infections or other serious disease.
“This marks quite a change in the virus as it has always made people very sick, with debilitating fever and muscle pain for about one to two weeks, and occasionally neuronal symptoms like meningitis, but it has never before killed people.
“Additionally, there have been anecdotal reports since the 1980s that Oropouche virus infection of women in the first trimester of pregnancy could cause foetal death.
“We have unfortunately now seen several cases of early-term abortions where the foetus was infected with Oropouche virus.
“This has potential public health implications so we need to maintain vigilance and monitor the situation carefully.
“This is a virus that infects people, and people travel.
“If you visit an area where there is an epidemic and are bitten by an insect carrying Oropouche, you might not develop symptoms for two to three days, and by that time you might have flown home to Europe or the USA.
“However, we have no evidence that the virus can spread directly from person to person – you need an insect to bite you and then bite someone else to transmit the disease – and there’s no evidence that the insects we have in the UK or on mainland Europe are able to transmit Oropouche virus infection.”
“It might be wise to avoid tropical forests or cities with current outbreaks,” she told the Sun.
After Europe warned of its first-ever case of the disease last week, Dr Danny Altmann, a Professor of Immunology at Imperial College London, said “we should definitely be worried” about the spread of this bug.
“Things are changing and may become unstoppable,” he told the Telegraph.
Last month, Brazil reported the world’s first deaths from the bug after two women in their early twenties passed away in Bahia state in the northeast of the country.
The two women, aged 21 and 24, suffered severe bleeding and hypotension and were reported dead on July 25.
In June Brazil’s health minister reported a pregnant woman lost her baby at 30 weeks, with the Oropouche virus detected in the umbilical cord and organs.
Oropouche virus: Everything you need to know
Oropouche fever is a disease caused by Oropouche virus.
It is spread through the bites of infected midges (small flies) and mosquitoes.
Symptoms of Oropouche fever are similar to dengue and include headache, fever, muscle aches, stiff joints, nausea, vomiting, chills, or sensitivity to light.
Severe cases may result in brain diseases such as meningitis.
Symptoms typically start 4–8 days after being bitten and last 3–6 days.
Most people recover without long-term effects.
There are no specific medications or vaccines are available.
Precautions
Travellers heading to affected areas should take steps to avoid bug bites.
The virus is endemic in many South American countries, in both rural and urban communities.
Outbreaks are periodically reported in Brazil, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, French Guiana, Panama, Peru, and Trinidad and Tobago.
Wear tops with long sleeves and long trousers, apply insect repellent regularly, and sleep under a mosquito net if you are not in enclosed, air-conditioned accommodation.
Source: US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention