Sloth Fever-Three Toed Sloth

About Sloth Fever

Sloth fever is also known as Oropouche Fever. This virus was first discovered in a three-toed sloth in Brazil in the 1960s, which is where the byname “sloth fever” originated. Additionally, it is prevalent in regions like Central and South America, especially in “the Amazon” and “the Caribbean.”

Symptoms of Sloth Fever:

The symptoms of this disease arise 3 to 10 days after exposure and last for about 3 to 6 days. The most common signs include:

• Joint stiffness
• Headache
• A sudden attack of fever
• Muscle ache
• Eye pain and sensitivity to light
• Nausea, vomiting and diarrhea
• Rash
• Fatigue

In some of the rarely witnessed cases, the infection caused more intense neurological complications such as:

Encephalitis (inflammation of the brain)

Meningitis (inflammation of the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord)

These neuroinvasive conditions can upshot symptoms such as intense headache, dizziness, confusion, photophobia (light sensitivity), nuchal rigidity (stiff neck), and more.

Causes and Transmission:

The Oropouche virus primarily causes Oropouche fever, and infected insects (tiny blood-sucking flies) or mosquitoes transmit it to humans. The virus toggles between these insect carriers and animals like sloths, birds, and marsupials.

Treatment and Prevention:

There is no distinct treatment for this Oropouche virus infection. Effective care and management can lead to relieving symptoms.

• Rest along with staying hydrated.
• Pain and fever monitoring with drug surveillance like acetaminophen.

Intense cases, especially those with neurological symptoms, may need hospitalization. There is no such vaccine prescribed for this disease, so the best cure is to avoid insect bites, which can be achieved in the following ways.

• Using insect repellents.
• Wearing covered clothes
• Using nets for the beds and window screens.
• Restrict outdoor movements especially during peak mosquito and midge activity times (dawn and dusk)

 Current Condition:

   This virus has resulted in several outbreaks in different parts of South America and the Caribbean. More recently, travelers returning from affected regions brought cases of Oropouche fever to the U.S. and Europe, thereby highlighting its impacts in these areas. Consequently, health representatives advised caution to those traveling to infected areas and suggested preventive steps to avoid mosquito and midge bites.

What do we still need to Know?

Although this virus is not a new virus but still a lot of research on it requires to be done. A medical journal described it as a “Mysterious Threat.” Scientists are also busy trying to explore what led to the outbreak of this virus. According to one of the researchers, this virus is an RNA virus and its genome is made up of several segments.

According to Graham’s researcher’s explanation, the virus possesses the capability to rapidly mutate, and as a result, this mixing and matching of different segments can create two distinct strains. Furthermore, such genetic mixing can help the virus become more transmissible and pathogenic.

According to Graham, this can be the reason for this virus’s recent outbreak in Brazil.