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Oropouche virus
Classification:
- belongs to the Simbu serogroup of the genus Orthobunyavirus in the Peribunyaviridae family.
Epidemiology:
- endemic areas in the Amazon basin
- spread to people primarily by the bite of infected biting midges (Culicoides paranesis)
- Some mosquitoes can also spread the virus
Clinical manifestations:
- incubation period is 3-10 days
- typically presents as an abrupt onset of fever, severe headache, chills, myalgia, & arthralgia
- other signs & symptoms include photophobia, dizziness, retroorbital pain or eye pain, nausea/vomiting, or centrifugal maculopapular rash that starts on the trunk & goes to the extremities
- less common symptoms can include conjunctival injection, diarrhea, severe abdominal pain, & hemorrhagic symptoms (epistaxis, gingival bleeding, melena, menorrhagia, petechiae)
- symptoms typically last less than a week (2-7 days)
- in < 60% of patients, symptoms can reoccur a few days or even weeks later with similar symptoms on relapse
Laboratory:
- CBC: lymphopenia, leukopenia, thrombocytopenia less common
- elevated serum CRP
- mildly elevated serum transaminases
- CSF pleocytosis, elevated CSF protein with neuroinvasive disease
- viral culture during first few days of infection, not detected after 5 days
- Oropouche virus RNA detectable for several days after virus is no longer present
- convalescent IgM & IgG
- CDC can perform plaque reduction neutralization tests (PRNTs) to detect virus-specific neutralizing antibodies in serum & CSF
- to confirm a recent infection using serologic testing, both acute & convalescent samples are needed to document a >= 4-fold change in antibody titers
Complications:
- neuroinvasive disease (meningitis, encephalitis)
- most patients recover without long-term sequellae, death uncommon
- fetal deaths & congenital abnormalities have been reported in pregnant women
Differential diagnosis:
- other arboviruses
- dengue, chikungunya
- Zika virus
- malaria
Management:
- no vaccines to prevent Oropouche infection
- no medicines to treat Oropouche infection
- prevention: personal protective measures to avoid bites
General
Orthobunyavirus; bunyavirus
Properties
KINGDOM: virus
GENOME-TYPE: RNA
SINGLE-STRANDED
NEGATIVE-STRAND
CIRCULAR
GENOME-SIZE: 13-21 kB
ENVELOPE: PRESENT
CAPSID-SYMMETRY: HELICAL
References
- Centers for Disease Control & Prevention
Increased Oropouche Virus Activity and Associated Risk to Travelers
CDC Health Alert Network. August 16, 2024
https://emergency.cdc.gov/han/2024/han00515.asp