Hemorrhagic fever in Iraq.. 12 deaths and 55 confirmed infections so far
The Iraqi authorities announced today, Tuesday, that the death toll from hemorrhagic fever has risen to 12, despite the authorities' efforts to limit the spread of this viral disease transmitted by livestock.
"The total number of confirmed cases of hemorrhagic fever is 55, including 12 deaths," Ministry of Health spokesman Saif Al-Badr said during a press conference.
Dhi Qar Governorate, southern Iraq, recorded 29 infections, including six deaths, in the poor rural governorate, where cows, sheep, goats and buffaloes are raised, all of which are intermediate animals that transmit this disease, which is also known as "Congo fever".
The World Health Organization said that the transmission of hemorrhagic fever to humans occurs "either through tick bites or by contact with the blood or tissues of infected animals during or immediately after slaughter."
On Friday, an official toll reported 40 injuries, including eight deaths, throughout Iraq.
Despite this, Al-Badr told AFP, "We have not reached a state of the disease outbreak, but the infections are more than last year."
At the same time, he acknowledged the weakness of the measures to limit the spread of the disease, saying, "We believe that the measures are substandard by all parties, especially with regard to random slaughter."
During the past few days, the authorities imposed strict measures to prevent the phenomenon of indiscriminate slaughter, which often spreads in popular neighborhoods, in addition to preventing the transfer of livestock from one area to another, and carried out disinfection campaigns for animals.
During the past few days, injuries appeared in governorates that they had not witnessed before, including Erbil in the north, Najaf (central), Nineveh (north) and Kirkuk, north of Baghdad.
Livestock farmers and butchers workers are most at risk of contracting the disease, according to the Ministry of Health.
There is no vaccine for this disease in humans or animals, and its primary symptoms are fever, muscle pain and abdominal pain, but when it develops, it leads to bleeding from the eyes, ears and nose, leading to failure in the body’s organs, which leads to death, according to the Iraqi Ministry of Health.
And infection with hemorrhagic fever virus leads to death at a rate ranging between 10 to 40% of infected people.
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