SAO PAULO: Brazil has recorded the world’s first Oropouche virus deaths, the country’s health ministry said on Thursday, after two women died of the illness spread by infected flies and mosquitos.

The women from the state of Bahia, in north-eastern Brazil, were “under 30 years old, with no co-morbidities, but who had signs and symptoms similar to a severe case of dengue”, the ministry said in a statement.

The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website stated there were currently known outbreaks of Oropouche in parts of Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Cuba and Peru.

Brazil’s health ministry said there had been 7,236 cases of Oropouche infection recorded this year, with the majority being reported out of the states of Amazonas and Rondonia.

According to the CDC, symptoms of Oropouche viral infection usually begin four to eight days after being bitten.

Symptoms typically last for three to six days, the health agency said, with similar symptoms to dengue, such as fever, muscle aches, stiff joints, headache, vomiting, nausea, chills or sensitivity to light.

Severe cases can result in life-threatening complications such as meningitis.

Oropouche was first isolated in Brazil in 1960.

Most cases have been reported in the Amazon region of Brazil, but outbreaks and isolated cases have been reported elsewhere in Latin America.

Published in Dawn, July 27th, 2024