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Liverpool Echo
Liverpool Echo
World
Hannah Kane & Catherine Murphy

Symptoms of deadly virus that could reach UK after spreading across Europe

A deadly virus is "likely" to reach the UK after it has spread across Europe, health experts are warning.

MirrorOnline reports Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF), has 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".

READ MORE: Vet shares five dog breeds he would never own as a pet

On its website, the World Health Organization describes says the virus is "primarily transmitted to people from ticks and livestock animals. Human-to-human transmission can occur resulting from close contact with the blood, secretions, organs or other bodily fluids of infected persons".

The disease is caused by Nairovirus, a condition and according to the World Health Organization (WHO) and has a fatality rate of between 10 and 40 percent.

Symptoms to look out for:

Headaches

High fever

Back and joint pain,

Stomach ache

Vomiting.

Red eyes

A flushed face

A red throat

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.

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