Kaberamaido registers case of Crimean Congo Fever
Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever is a viral haemorrhagic fever transmitted by ticks
What you need to know:
- According to the district health officer, Dr James Daniel Odongo, the patient, a resident of Abirabira Village, in Aperkira Sub-county, was recently admitted to Kaberamaido General Hospital before being referred to Soroti Regional hospital.
Kaberamaido District has registered its first case of Crimean Congo Haemorrhagic Fever (CCHF).
According to the district health officer, Dr James Daniel Odongo, the patient, a resident of Abirabira Village, in Aperkira Sub-county, was recently admitted to Kaberamaido General Hospital before being referred to Soroti Regional hospital.
He said when blood samples were taken to Entebbe, the results last week turned out positive for Crimean Congo Haemorrhagic Fever.
Reports from Ministry of Health indicate that CCHF virus is transmitted to people either by tick bites or through contact with infected animal blood or tissues during and immediately after slaughter.
According to the district chairperson, Mr Victor Rex Ekesu, they have embarked on a drive to create awareness among communities about the disease.
“Crimean Congo Haemorrhagic Fever is caused by ticks, which we can’t avoid since we have domestic animals at home. The communities should report such cases to any health workers,” he said.
He said the virus presents signs similar to those of Ebola.
“So our people need to be vigilant and we have reinstated the sub-county task force and our ambulances are ready to pick up the suspected cases,” he said.
The CCHF, a disease caused by a tick-borne virus (Nairovirus), kills between 10 and 40 percent of infected persons, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). This means it is more deadly than Covid-19 whose case fatality rate is around 3 percent.
CCHF is endemic in Africa, the Balkans, the middle East and Asian countries south of the 50’s parallel north - the geographical limit of the principal tick vector.
THE SYMPTOMS
The symptoms are fever, myalgia, (muscle ache), dizziness, neck pain and stiffness, backache, headache, sore eyes and photophobia (sensitivity to light), nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, abdominal pain and sore throat early on, followed by sharp mood swings and confusion. Records indicate that since 2000, Uganda has experienced repeated outbreaks of viral hemorrhagic fevers (VHF).
