Twenty-one Americans are diagnosed with terrifying sloth fever READ MORE: Terrifying 'sloth fever' is detected in US vacation hotspot IF YOU HAVE A HEALTH STORY, WE'D LOVE TO HEAR IT. GET IN TOUCH [email protected] By Emily Joshu Health Reporter For Dailymail.
Com Published: 20:02 BST, 27 August 2024 | Updated: 20:02 BST, 27 August 2024 e-mail View comments Twenty-one Americans have been diagnosed with a virus that originated in sloths and is spread by mosquitos. The US Centers for Disease Control ( CDC ) said the patients were diagnosed with the Oropouche virus after returning to the US from Cuba . Twenty of the cases were in Florida and one is in New York.
The most common symptoms were fevers, muscle aches, headaches, fatigue and stiffness. Three patients were hospitalized, but there were no deaths. The Oropouche virus is spread by mosquitos in tropical parts of the Caribbean and South America where it has been causing an unprecedented outbreak since late last year.
The Oropouche virus is nicknamed sloth fever not because it's transmitted by sloths, but because the animals can be carriers for the disease The Oropouche virus is spread primarily by bites from a bug called a midge. Sometimes, mosquitos also carry it In rare cases, it can cause brain swelling and death, and claimed the life of two healthy Brazilian women earlier this year. In 2024, there have been more than 8,000 cases reported in Central and South America - causing two deaths, one miscarriage and four newborns to be born with birth defects.
Nineteen cases were reported in Europe earlier this month, leading to a warning from the European Center for Disease Control. The Oropouche virus is spread by mosquitos and a small, blood-sucking insect called midge. Despite its nickname, sloth fever is not caused by coming into contact with sloths.
Instead, it got the nickname because scientists believe sloths can carry and be infected by the disease. Experts suspect other animals, like birds, can also carry the virus. Read More BREAKING NEWS Health warning as New Hampshire man dies from mosquito-borne brain swelling virus If you get bit by a bug carrying Oropouche, there are no medicines to treat it and no vaccines to prevent it.
The only defense against the disease is to avoid being bit all together when traveling to these regions. The 21 infected Americans ranged from 15 to 94 years old, with an average age of 48. The most common symptom was fever (95 percent), followed by muscle aches (86 percent), headache (76 percent), fatigue (62 percent), and joint stiffness (57 percent).
Patients also reported diarrhea, abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, rash, back pain, and bloody mucus. Less than one in 20 people who get the disease will go on to develop more serious, life-threatening symptoms. These include severe bleeding, meningitis, a swelling of the membranes that protect the brain, and encephalitis, a swelling of the brain itself.
It can also cause birth defects and miscarriage. It's unclear if any patients in the CDC's report were pregnant. Pregnancy status was not collected due to confidentiality.
The agency recommended physicians prevent suspected Oropouche infections to state or local health authorities to speed up testing and prevent spread. Patients should avoid taking nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) like ibuprofen to lower the risk of bleeding. To prevent infection, the CDC recommends wearing long sleeves and pants, wearing insect repellant and staying in places that use window and door screens.
DO SLOTHS CARRY DISEASE? Sloths are one of the internet's favorite animals, but although they may be cute but there green, algae-colored fur hosts a vast number of invertebrates. The animal central to Central and South America carries moths, parasites and giant ticks. Most of the organisms that call a sloth home have a mutualistic symbiotic relationship, where both the sloths and their passengers benefit.
Coccidia These are commonly found in domestic and captive wild animals, including sloths. It includes a wide variety of parasites that produce varying degrees of severity, from mild diarrhea to appetite suppression dehydration. Tapeworm Captive sloths have frequently been found to be infected with Eucestoda, commonly known as tapeworm.
Giant ticks Due to their low body temperature, sloths are not as prone to tick infestations as most mammals. But if they are on the ground for extended periods, they may pick up ticks. This happens more as they need to move between deforested areas.
Skin parasites Captive sloths have sometimes been diagnosed with scabies, which is caused by the mite parasite Sarcoptes scabiei. Flesh-eating parasites Leishmaniasis is a disease carried by animals. The disease is usually transmitted through the bite of female sandflies, who inject the immature form of the parasite, which then matures inside the host, produces more promastigotes (baby Leishmanias), which are then transmitted back to sandflies via another bite, and the cycle begins again.
However, it's a commonly that sloths are associated with leishmaniasis. Some say a victim can acquire the disease by being bitten by a sloth, others claim that sandflies live in sloth fur. But sandflies do not live on sloths and sloth bites in humans are infrequent and could not transmit Leishmaniasis.
As with most myths, there is a grain of truth at the heart of this one: sloths are reservoir hosts of the Leishmania parasite. This means that the parasite can live in them without causing disease in the sloths. In fact, studies have suggested that sloths are one of the largest Leishmaniasis reservoirs in Central and South America.
Reservoir hosts, such as sloths, dogs, and cats, cannot pass the disease onto humans. Source: The Sloth Conservation Foundation New York Cuba Florida Share or comment on this article: Twenty-one Americans are diagnosed with terrifying sloth fever e-mail Add comment.
