An urgent health warning has been issued for - what has been described as - the current biggest threat to public health over new cases of Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever. Symptoms of the virus are spreading across Europe - and it's 'highly likely' to reach UK, reports The Mirror.
Experts say it could reach our shores after breakouts in Iraq and Namibia. Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF), has also caused two reported deaths in Pakistan - with several cases reported in Spain. Last week, insiders speaking to Parliament's Science, Innovation and Technology Committee revealed it was "highly likely" there could soon be cases in the UK.
During the hearing, James Wood, head of veterinary medicine at Cambridge University, said CCHF could find its way to the UK "through our ticks, at some point".
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The disease is caused by Nairovirus, a condition that is spread by ticks and according to the World Health Organization (WHO) has a fatality rate of between 10 and 40 percent.
Typically, the condition is found at small stages in Africa, the Balkans, the Middle East and in Asia, reports the Express. However, the disease could be expanding out of its usual territories and moving towards the likes of Britain and France due to climate change.
The likes of Spain were already seeing cases of the disease, Newsweek reported. WHO noted CCHF was among its nine "priority diseases", a system that lays bare the biggest public health risks.
Symptoms of CCHF
Among the virus' symptoms include headaches, high fever, back and joint pain, stomach ache, and vomiting. Red eyes, a flushed face, a red throat, and petechiae (red spots) on the palate are also common.
In severe cases, WHO warns, jaundice, mood swings and sensory perception are encountered. As the illness progresses, large areas of severe bruising, severe nosebleeds, and uncontrolled bleeding at injection sites can be seen, beginning on about the fourth day of illness and lasting for about two weeks.
In documented outbreaks of CCHF, fatality rates in hospitalised patients ranged from nine percent to as high as 50 percent. The long-term effects of CCHF infection have not been studied well enough in survivors to determine whether or not specific complications exist. However, recovery is slow.
Reported deaths
Iraq was reportedly in a major battle with the disease last year, with 212 incidents recorded between January 1 and May 22. Of those, 169 were reported between April and May alone.
Agence France-Presse added in May that almost 100 additional cases - and 13 deaths - were so far in 2023 attributed to the toll in Iraq.
