Yellow Fever

Yellow fever is an infectious disease caused by the flavivirus yellow fever virus. Yellow fever virus causes a serious illness of viscerotropic infection with hemorrhagic syndrome. In the viremic stage, the virus occurs in the liver, bone marrow and kidneys. According to the epidemiology of the occurrence, the urban and jungle form of yellow fever is distinguished.


 * Occurrence: subtropical and tropical Africa, Central and South America;
 * source: human or monkeys during viraemia;
 * vector: Aedes aegypti mosquito in urban form, Aedes africanus mosquito or Haemagogus mosquito in jungle form;
 * lethality: 25-50%.
 * incubation period:3-6 days
 * therapy:symptomatic, there is no causal treatment

First stage (red)

 * chills, fever, lumbar pain;
 * fever is usually a bradycardia (Faget's sign);
 * restlessness, patients are generally red.

Second stage (yellow)

 * worsening of the general condition, face paleness, cyanosis, bleeding from the mucous membranes;
 * vomits black digested blood (vomito negro);
 * manifestation of liver damage - jaundice (but may be absent).

Prevention
A live attenuated vaccine is available for prevention (this vaccination is mandatory for entry into some countries). Thanks to vaccination and mosquito control, the urban form of yellow fever has been eradicated in some areas. However, the persistent potential source of human infection is the circulation of the disease in the jungle.

Related articles

 * Transmissible infections
 * Flaviviruses
 * Vaccination

Reference
Category: Embedded articles Category: Infectious diseases Category: Microbiology