Scientists are urging caution against a mysterious, Ebola-like viral disease that appears to have spread from person to person during a small outbreak in Bolivia last year. The disease caused by the chaperone virus has killed three people and that is it At least five are believed to be ill During the outbreak, patients came in contact with three healthcare workers. Symptoms include internal bleeding, fever, and extensive organ damage.
There is a virus Named The first known outbreak of the disease occurred in late 2003, after the site, near the Bolivian Chapar River. Although many people suspected the disease in 2003 and 2004, detailed information and blood samples were taken from the same patient at the time: A 22-year-old tailor and farmer living in a rural village in Samujabeti.
The man initially had a headache and fever, which were accompanied by joint pain, vomiting, And internal bleeding, also called hemorrhaging. This collection of symptoms is known as hemorrhagic fever And familiar with other very dangerous but generally rare viral diseases, such as Ebola, often have fatal consequences. Within two weeks, the man died.
Doctors were able to study hiIsolation of blood and virus before documenting other potential diseases common in an area such as dengue. The secret virus was found to be a member of the arenavirus family, a Virus group Which usually infects rats and sometimes humans. Its relatives include the most well-known Lassa virus in South America and other viruses, such as the Machupo virus in Bolivia and the Junin virus in Argentina. Many of these viruses can cause hemorrhagic fever in people.
In 2019, the Chapra virus returned to Bolivia, first seen in a farm worker who developed hemorrhagic fever and eventually died as a result. After it became clear that the patient’s dreaded symptoms were not caused by dengue or other physical illnesses, health officials launched an extensive investigation, finally following a list of help from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention among US CDC specialists, confirming that the worker had arrived. Down with the chaperone virus.
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most of arenaviruses What makes people sick is spread from rats to people. Usually, it occurs when people breathe in dried rat urine or in aerosols or are contaminated with the virus or otherwise come into direct contact with rats. During this latest outbreak, health officials found viral traces of rats in rats near where farmers were working, According to Research Released this week on Virtual Annual meeting of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.
But at least three health care workers who communicated with infected patients – a medical resident, an ambulance worker and a gastroenterologist – also developed the illness, in which two eventually died. Health officials strongly believe that in these other cases the virus was spread from person to person. Another finding was that viral traces could be found in the semen of a survivor more than 160 days after infection, something that has also been documented for hemorrhagic fever viruses such as Ebola.
“We now believe that many bodily fluids could potentially carry the virus,” said Caitlin Cosaboom, an epidemiologist in the CTC’s high-outcome pathogenesis and pathology department. Statement Published by the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.
The ongoing epidemic and how it is given Started, It is understandable to be concerned with this news. But while it is not totally uncontrollable, it should be noted that most human outbreaks of arenavirus are limited, as this one was. And the main route of their transmission is still primarily from rats to humans. If the virus is transmitted from one person to another, it appears through direct contact with bodily fluids, such as blood or saliva, which limits the likelihood of spreading its lethality. Contrast that with something like Covid-19, a respiratory disease that spreads easily through the respiratory tract – just like an infected person breathes air –And a person can become infected even before they are obviously sick.
He said it is important for epidemiologists and other scientists to keep a close eye on potential risks such as the chaperone virus, especially in areas of the world where health care resources are limited. Increase Potential risk of transmission to health care workers. Even viruses spread by direct contact with bodily fluids can spread Large outbreaks Under the right conditions, such as the Ebola outbreak in West Africa in 2014, about 30,000 people became infected and more than 11,000 died. Lassa virus is also related to the roof Infects regularly In those parts of Africa, about 300,000 people are killed each year.
For now, scientists plan to learn as much as possible about the chaperone virus, including its potential rodent hosts from recent cases, where it could have originated., And whether he is roaming the country unfamiliar to doctors. After the 2019 outbreak, doctors then documented three other possible cases, although all Patients Survived.
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