Iraq records 20 deaths of Congo fever

On Tuesday, the Ministry of Health in the federal government recorded 20 deaths of Congo fever.

The spokesman for the Ministry of Health, Dr. Saif al-Badr, said in a press statement that the ministry recorded 120 new cases of Congo fever, including 20 deaths.

"The disease is not new but has occurred since the seventies of the last century, but every few years, there is an increase in the number of cases and deaths. In the past year, there was a relative increase according to statistics of one month," he added.

He stressed that the efforts to confront random slaughter are still below the required level, and the situation requires more attention, noting, "The Ministry of Health is concerned with early detection of infections through the central health laboratory, while the responsibility to confront the disease is a joint and solidarity responsibility."

He explained that Agriculture Ministry is responsible for the diseases that spread between humans and animals and the issue of combating the infected animal or the insect that carries Congo fever.

He emphasized the need to prevent the indiscriminate slaughter and illegal transportation of animals and hold butchers accountable who breaking the law. Not only to confront hemorrhagic fever but also to confront the rest of the shared diseases.

The Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic fever, also known as Congo fever, is tick-borne and causes severe hemorrhaging. 

People are often infected after they come into contact with the blood of infected animals, often after slaughtering livestock. The symptoms of the disease in its first stage include high temperature, lethargy, and various pains in the body and abdomen in particular.

Congo fever has been endemic to Iraq since 1979, according to World Health Organization (WHO). It can be transmitted from one infected human to another by contact with infectious blood or body fluids.

The disease existed in Iraq with only 20 cases or less in a year, but this year, the country has recorded over 55 cases so far, prompting authorities to take measures to control the disease spread.

Kirkuk recorded the first case of hemorrhagic fever death on May 7.



PUKmedia