The potentially deadly Rift Valley Fever (RVF) is spreading throughout the province, but there have been no known reported cases of the disease in Grahamstown.
The potentially deadly Rift Valley Fever (RVF) is spreading throughout the province, but there have been no known reported cases of the disease in Grahamstown.
This has been confirmed by the manager of Agri Eastern Cape, Sharlene Matthews. Although nothing has been reported in the Grahamstown area, the disease is spreading in the Eastern Cape, especially in the Humansdorp and Tsitsikamma areas, according to an article published in The Herald on Tuesday.
RVF is a type of zoonosis, which is any infectious disease that has the ability to be transmitted from animals to humans. Reverse zoonosis is a disease infecting humans which can be passed onto animals.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) website breaks down the disease into mild and severe forms. Humans can be infected through either direct or indirect contact with an infected animal’s blood or organs.
This transmission can happen through handling animal tissue while slaughtering or butchering. The WHO website also mentions that there is some evidence of humans being infected through drinking unpasteurised milk.
Symptoms of the disease include blurred vision, headaches, muscle and joint pain, and in severe cases, memory loss and hallucinations.
The first reported human death was of a 49-year-old male living in the Western Cape on 29 April. As of yet, there is no approved and licensed vaccine for humans but infected humans cannot pass the disease onto other humans.
The Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries issued a press release on Monday, declaringing that there have been confirmed cases diagnosed in Namibia.
Due to this, some imports from Namibia have been cancelled including venison, beef, mutton and goats meat.
