Congo Fever in India: Maharashtra’s Palghar District Authorities Alerted
With the possibility of the spread of the Congo fever in the Maharashtra district, the Palghar administration asked authorities to remain alert, take all necessary precautions, and implement preventive measures, on Tuesday.
The Congo fever or the Crimean Congo Hemorrhagic Fever (CCHF) is usually transmitted by ticks and can spread in humans either through ticks or coming in contact with infected animal blood. Amid the COVID-19 pandemic situation, this disease which does not have specific and useful treatment is a matter of concern for meat-sellers, cattle- breeders, and animal husbandry officials said the district administration.
In some of Gujarat districts, the CCHF has been reported and it is possible for the virus to spread to border districts of Maharashtra, said Dr. Prashant D Kamble, the deputy commissioner in the Palghar animal husbandry department, in a circular.
The circular said, “A specific type of tick transmits the viral disease from one animal to another animal. By consuming the meat of infected animals and coming in contact with the blood of the virus-infected animals, the disease is transmitted to humans. Around 30 percent of patients die if the diagnosis and the treatment for
the disease are not done in time.”As stated by the World Health Organisation (WHO), a tick-borne virus of the Bunyaviridae family, Nairovirus is responsible for the widespread Crimean Congo Hemorrhagic Fever. This viral disease has a case fatality rate of 10 to 40 percent and causes severe viral hemorrhagic fever outbreaks. The disease does not have a dedicated treatment or a vaccine for neither the infected animals nor the people.
According to WHO, through close contact with an infected person’s bodily fluids, secretions, blood, or organs, human-to-human transmission is possible. Improper sterilization of medical equipment, contamination of medical supplies, reuse of needles, can also give rise to hospital-acquired infections.
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Congo Fever in India: Maharashtra’s Palghar District Authorities Alerted
