6 persons were suspected to have Congo fever like symptoms in Bhavnagar district of Gujarat. Out of 6 cases reported of Congo fever, 3 patients with more severity were being treated in Bhavanagar hospital where as other 3 were being treated in the Sihor government hospital.
However doctors have not yet confirmed of having Congo fever cases in Gujarat. People of Bhavnagar district are under panic with symptoms of Congo like fever having found in 6 persons.
Health teams have rushed to Bhavanagar to take stock of situation.
As per source.
Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) a viral disease that spreads with tick bite. It was first found in Crimea in 1944 and was called Crimean Hemorrhagic fever. It was later also described in Congo, hence it was named Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic fever. The disease is more seen in Africa, Asia, East Europe and the Middle East.
CCHF is caused by a virus from a group called Nairovirus. The virus infects wild as well as domestic animals like sheep and cattle using tick bites. Humans get infected when they come in direct contact with blood or tissues from infected animals or bites of infected ticks. Crushing of infected tick could also result in infection. Infection may rarely occur if people breathe in the virus passed out in the infected animal’s excreta. People work with livestock such as those working in agriculture, slaughterhouses and veterinary hospitals are more prone to getting the disease.
Some Signs and Symptoms
In begining CCHF is sudden, with initial signs and symptoms including headache, high fever, back pain, joint pain, stomach pain, and vomiting, red eyes, a flushed face, a red throat, and petechiae (red spots) on the palate are common. Symptoms may have jaundice, and in severe cases, changes in mood and sensory perception.
As the illness progresses, large areas of severe bruising, severe nosebleeds, and uncontrolled bleeding at injection sites appear, beginning on about the fourth day of illness and lasting for about two weeks. In documented outbreaks of CCHF, fatality rates in hospitalized patients have ranged between 9% to 50%.
The long-term effects of CCHF infection have not been studied well enough in survivors to determine whether or not specific complications exist. Recovery of the illness is said to be slow.
