Panama: Dozens of Oropouche cases detected in Darien province
The Panama Ministry of Health (Minsa) through the Epidemiology Department of the General Directorate of Public Health, informs the population of the detection of an outbreak of the Oropouche virus in the province of Darien.
Deputy Minister of Health, Manuel Zambrano said according to the report of the Gorgas Memorial Institute, a total of 58 samples were collected from febrile patients at the Metetí Health Center, the samples were taken by doctors from the health center and from the Gorgas research team.
Of a total of 58 patients evaluated by RT-PCR testing, a total of 34 sera from these patients were positive.
Officials said that the positive cases for Oropouche correspond to the districts of the Darién Health Region, distributed as follows: Metetí 27 cases; Yaviza 3 cases; Río Iglesias 2 cases; Lajas Blancas 1 case and 1 case to be determined.
The main symptoms detected in these people were: fever (97%) and headache (94.1%).
The age group between 40 and 49 years is the most affected with an attack rate of 87.5%.
The Minsa recommends that the population go to health facilities if they have high fever, headache, myalgia, arthralgia and photophobia.
Although Oropouche is not usually fatal, the impact on quality of life and health systems can be significant due to its high morbidity.
Blas Armién, head of Epidemiology at the Ministry of Health said there is no specific treatment or vaccine to treat this virus. Rest, hydration and medication for high fever and pain are recommended.
The virus has a high potential for spread, particularly in tropical and subtropical areas.
The Ministry of Health continues to monitor the health situation in Darien province to determine risk factors and the spread of the virus to other areas of the country and to identify potential vectors in the affected area.