In the United States and Europe, they started talking about the threat of a new epidemic, which could become more terrible and more real than bird and swine flu. In American and European cities, cases of a very rare disease have been recorded, which sometimes leads to death. We are talking about the so-called West Nile fever
Doctors sounded the alarm last month. On July 5, in New York, a case of hospitalization with this terrible diagnosis was recorded. A 66-year-old woman from Long Island developed a fever. Doctors for a long time could not establish the cause of the disease, but in the end the disease was diagnosed. And already this month in the United States with West Nile fever, a 61-year-old man and two women (74 and 46 years old) were hospitalized. The most mysterious is how this disease ended up in the United States.
West Nile fever is mainly transmitted by mosquitoes and ticks. For the first time in America, cases of such a disease were recorded in 1999. In 2002, even a real epidemic broke out in Pennsylvania: 25 people died. However, as epidemiologists assured, the carriers of this disease in the United States no longer exist. And now mosquitoes with West Nile virus were found immediately in several counties of the states of New York and Pennsylvania. Last month, the American press suggested that the disease could have come to America from Greece: allegedly brought from there birds, or rather, bird parasites, which were not noticed during quarantine. In the Mediterranean, however, outbreaks of West Nile fever do occur.
At first, epidemiologists reacted to this version with some degree of skepticism and, as it turned out, in vain. A few days ago, an epidemic of West Nile fever began in Greece. According to the Athens News Agency, there are now 22 cases of infection with this dangerous virus in the country.
The epicenter of the spread of the mysterious disease was the city of Thessaloniki. Seven people were hospitalized there. Unfortunately, there is already a fatal case: a 76-year-old man has died. The peculiarity of the Greek outbreak of this disease is that it affects older people. Although it has always been believed that younger people are more likely to suffer from West Nile Fever. Perhaps we are talking about a new strain? Unfortunately, West Nile fever and Russia were not spared. Last month, four cases of this disease were recorded in the Volgograd region (fortunately, none with a fatal outcome). But, at least in our country, the reason for the spread of this disease is clear. In summer, migratory birds are concentrated in the Volga delta for nesting. They bring a dangerous virus from Africa along with parasites. It is believedthat the natural focus of the disease has existed here since 1999.
According to doctors, the first symptoms of West Nile fever are excruciating pains in the forehead, eye sockets, lower back and neck, a sharp rise in temperature up to 40 degrees. By the way, according to statistics, only 4% of cases of West Nile fever were fatal.
newizv.ru
By the way
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The Wildlife Conservation Society has published a "deadly dozen" diseases that have spilled over the previously delineated "geographic shores" due to changes caused by global warming.
The dozen included: avian influenza, cholera, internal and external parasites, plague, tick-borne borreliosis (Lyme disease), African trypanosomiasis (sleeping sickness), tuberculosis, yellow fever, Ebola, East African Rift Valley fever, babesiosis, red tides . And these are only diseases that pose a deadly threat to humans.
The expansion of their range is not surprising. Yellow fever, Ebola and East African Rift Valley fever are viral diseases. Tuberculosis, plague, cholera - bacterial; babesiosis and sleeping sickness are caused by protozoa, the bacterium-causative agent of borreliosis is spread by ticks. The increase in humidity, average annual air and water temperature, which is a consequence of global warming, leads to the fact that the lifespan of pathogenic microorganisms increases, as well as their range expands.
It's the same with parasites. Global warming leads to a "population boom" among fleas, ticks and other blood-sucking parasites, which simultaneously carry a large number of deadly diseases such as plague, Lyme disease or sleeping sickness. At the same time, a decrease in the amount of available water resources will entail the migration of animals carrying parasites and an increase in the frequency of their contacts with domestic animals.
lenta.com.ua
