Oropouche fever, a disease similar to Dengue, becomes a cause for warning in Amazonas

An epidemiological alert was issued by the Health Surveillance Foundation (FVS) in Amazonas, regarding Oropouche Fever, an infectious disease caused by the Oropouche virus.

In the period from December 2023 to January 2024, the Central Public Health Laboratory of Amazonas (Lacen-AM), confirmed through the PCR exam the identification of 199 cases of Oropouche Fever, after analyzing 675 samples collected. Amazonas released a statement on Thursday (22), reporting 1398 cases since the beginning of the year.

In February, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) warned about the growth of Oropouche in the American region, and emphasized that the population is affected regardless of their gender or age group. However, young people were the most affected.Â

About Oropouche

Oropouche is a virus whose transmission occurs through bites from infected mosquitoes, specifically the mosquito known as Maruim, which cause the recipient the disease called Oropouche Fever, which has symptoms similar to Dengue, including: high fever, headaches, joint pain, nausea and vomiting, which appear four to eight days after the bite, the diagnosis is given through testing patients who manifest symptoms and have negative results for Dengue.

_{Â Video explains about the Oropouche virus (Video: reproduction/YouTube/Rota do Knowledge)}

Treatment and prevention

There is still no precise treatment for Oropouche Fever, what is recommended through medical prescription is the use of analgesics to reduce pain, and antipyretics to reduce the fever.

While prevention, similar to what occurs in the campaign to combat Dengue, the best way to prevent the increase in Oropouche Fever, is to hinder the proliferation of the vectors of this virus, mosquitoes, avoiding the accumulation stagnant water, the main source of transmitting mosquitoes, the use of repellents, and the use of screens and mosquito nets in environments where many mosquitoes circulate.

Featured Photo: mosquito known as Maruim (Reproduction/catracalivre/Credits: Elena Goosen)