Rat-borne fever kills 10 as infection rates rise
By Wang Qingchu |
December 31, 2011, Saturday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
A FEVER spread by rats has claimed 10 lives in Qingdao of eastern China's Shandong Province this year, health authorities said yesterday.
Between October and November alone, 140 people were diagnosed with hemorrhagic fever, which can cause kidney failure.
The outbreak has occurred mainly in the rural outskirts of Qingdao, said officials.
Winter and spring are peak times for hemorrhagic fever, but this year has seen a higher spike, the authorities said.
Symptoms include fever, headaches and bleeding, the Shandong Television Station reported yesterday.
People can contract the disease through contact with infected rats or their droppings or through eating food or drinking water contaminated by the rodents.
However, it is not spread between humans.
The city's infectious disease hospital has seen a sharp increase in cases, treating dozens of people since November.
Ages of patients ranged from 12 to 69, a doctor surnamed Fan told the Qingdao Morning Post.
Early symptoms are like common cold and fever, but as hemorrhagic fever progresses it can cause the kidneys to stop functioning, Fan said.
Most patients were cured but several died from bleeding on the brain, Fan added.
Vaccination can prevent hemorrhagic fever but stocks have run out, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention at municipal and provincial levels told the television station.
Between October and November alone, 140 people were diagnosed with hemorrhagic fever, which can cause kidney failure.
The outbreak has occurred mainly in the rural outskirts of Qingdao, said officials.
Winter and spring are peak times for hemorrhagic fever, but this year has seen a higher spike, the authorities said.
Symptoms include fever, headaches and bleeding, the Shandong Television Station reported yesterday.
People can contract the disease through contact with infected rats or their droppings or through eating food or drinking water contaminated by the rodents.
However, it is not spread between humans.
The city's infectious disease hospital has seen a sharp increase in cases, treating dozens of people since November.
Ages of patients ranged from 12 to 69, a doctor surnamed Fan told the Qingdao Morning Post.
Early symptoms are like common cold and fever, but as hemorrhagic fever progresses it can cause the kidneys to stop functioning, Fan said.
Most patients were cured but several died from bleeding on the brain, Fan added.
Vaccination can prevent hemorrhagic fever but stocks have run out, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention at municipal and provincial levels told the television station.
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