Oropouche update for Cuba
In a follow-up on the Oropouche fever outbreak in Cuba, the head of the Department of Communicable Diseases at MINSAP, Dr. José Raúl de Armas recently reports the latest from the island nation:
To date, there have been 23,639 suspected cases and 626 confirmed cases. Among the latter, there were 76 patients with Guillain-Barré Syndrome, 25 with encephalitis and 15 with meningoencephalitis. By sex, 13,588 cases are women and 10,676 are men.
Infected people have been confirmed in 73.8% of municipalities and 100% of provinces; five of these, together with the Special Municipality of Isla de la Juventud, had cumulative incidence rates higher than the national average at the end of 2024. To date, there are 44 municipalities where no cases have been confirmed with laboratory tests.
The gastroenteric clinical form has been the most frequent. It occurred in almost 50% of the cases treated at the Pedro Kourí Institute of Tropical Medicine (IPK). Other clinical forms of presentation have been nonspecific febrile illness, febrile illness with skin rash and the neurological form.
In less severe cases, autonomic neuropathy was reported, with clinical manifestations related to the neuro-vegetative nervous system.
Although no confirmed cases have been reported since the end of 2024, the recent outbreak highlights the need to reinforce epidemiological and entomological surveillance, as well as preventive measures among the population.
To address the spread of Oropouche cases in the country, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) donated reagents and materials to support the molecular detection of the virus and facilitated the training of several Cuban laboratory professionals on whole genome sequencing, serological and molecular detection of Oropouche infection, and the production of essential reagents for detecting antibodies against this pathogen.
In September 2024, PAHO regional experts in virology, epidemiology, clinical management, entomology, and maternal and child health conducted a mission to Cuba to assess the current Oropouche fever situation, analyze the factors driving the ongoing outbreak, identify gaps, challenges, and opportunities for strengthening response and control efforts.