A disease with symptoms similar to dengue fever raises concerns for health authorities in the Amazon region National newspaper

Health authorities in the Amazon region are concerned about a disease with symptoms similar to those of dengue fever.

For the first time in more than 40 years. Oroboche fever The state of Amazonas was placed in Fin. From January 1, 2024 until Friday (23), there have been nearly 1,400 confirmed cases, according to the state health watchdog – more than three times the number recorded in all of 2023.

Pedro Augusto Tavares da Silva, the endemic agent, is part of this statistic. He lives in Parintins, about 400 kilometers from Manaus.

“I went to get tested there at surveillance. Then it was positive. I was really sick, didn't eat lunch, didn't eat anything, and basically lost 4kg. I lost it quickly,” he says.

In Manaus, health units are full of people with similar symptoms.

“It's the same thing that I felt, that my son felt, and that a lot of people in the neighborhood feel,” says housewife France Junia da Silva Cinebo.

Akka also recorded a rise in cases of orobo fever. There were 157 notifications in 2024, compared to 60 notifications in all of 2023. The Amazon region is the concentration of 98% of cases across the country, according to the report Ministry of Health.

The insect is the main vector of the virus that can cause Oropouche fever. And the colicoides barrensis, Popularly known as maruim or Meruem. In the indigenous language, nheengatu means little fly. It is 20 times smaller than Aedes aegyptivector of dengue, Zika, and chikungunya.

The symptoms between Dengue and Oropouche are similar: High temperature, headache, muscle and joint pain, and chills, sometimes accompanied by nausea, vomiting, and skin rash. This makes diagnosis difficult. Only laboratory tests can determine the type of disease.

A test to detect Oropouche fever that has been administered in several states across the country was developed by Fiocruz Amazon. When the patient's sample arrives for analysis, the result can be issued within 6 hours.

“We always had a routine of testing first for dengue, Zika and chikungunya given the number of cases across the country, and then testing for other diseases if negative,” says Felipe Navica, a public health researcher. “But today the situation is reversed.” In Fiocruz Amazonia.

Symptoms last five to seven days. But full recovery may take several weeks. The warning is the same as for the dengue mosquito: eliminate mosquito infestations and seek care at the first symptoms.