What is Kyasanur forest disease? Everything you need to know about fatal monkey fever in Shivmogga
Kyasanur Forest Disease, commonly known as Monkey Fever, is a virus that attacks humans and monkeys. Check its symptoms, transmission and prevention
Kyasanur forest disease (KFD) is a disease caused by a virus that infects rodents, shrews and monkeys. It is also known as monkey fever after KFD was found in 1957 when it was isolated from a sick monkey from the Kyasanur forest in Karnataka. Since then, nearly 400 to 500 human cases have been reported annually. It is a viral hemorrhagic fever caused by a member of the virus family Flaviviridae. Monkey fever is a communicable disease that usually affects monkeys and humans. This infection is contagious to individuals and animals and causes fever, headache and chills. In some cases, Kyasanur forest disease can become more severe and cause bleeding, resulting in death.
Transmission of Kyasanur forest disease
This disease can be transmitted via the vector Haemaphysalis spinigera. This virus spreads to humans through a forest sting and other animals that are sources of infection, including squirrels, rats, etc. It can also be caused by direct interaction with sick, dead monkeys. However, monkey fever is not transmitted between humans. This hemorrhagic fever usually spreads in October or November and increases in January to April.
Signs and Symptoms of Monkey Fever
Kyasanur forest disease, commonly known as monkey fever, causes several symptoms. The most common sign is feeling cold with a severe throbbing headache. The disease begins with sudden chills and high fever. The symptoms are visible after 2 to 7 days of tick bite. The fever usually lasts 12 days or more, with noticeable bleeding from the nose, throat, gums and even the intestines after 4 days after symptoms are recognized. A serious infection can cause bleeding in the lungs or blood loss in the intestines, resulting in death. Some of the neurological symptoms associated with monkey fever are as follows.
- Nausea
- Vomit
- Muscle stiffness
- Mental disorder
- Tremors
- Poor visibility
- Severe headache
- Bad reflexes
The incubation period of this disease is typically 3-8 days. However, it also depends on the immunity of an infected person and can vary as the patient may feel fatigued or have severe muscle pain that interferes with daily activities.
Prevention
Getting vaccinated is the best and safest way to prevent the transmission of monkey fever. The vaccine against this disease is given in two doses within a period of one month between the age group of 7 to 65 years. The vaccine is produced by inactivating the virus grown in chicken embryo tissue culture using formalin. Additional preventative measures against monkey fever include insect repellents and wearing protective clothing in areas where ticks are likely to attack.