Eight cases of Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever have been recorded in the Turkestan region of Kazakhstan since the beginning of this year. Among those affected were citizens of Uzbekistan, whom local experts identified as victims of tick bites sustained while working or relaxing in orchard fields.
According to Nurbek Nyshanov, head of the regional Sanitary and Epidemiological Control Department, six out of the eight infected individuals contracted the infection as a result of caring for livestock and contact with them. The remaining case was linked to a tick bite that occurred while mowing grass on private property. Specialists emphasize that complete eradication of ticks in the natural environment remains impossible, even when treating agricultural animals.
More than thirty-five thousand samples have been tested since the beginning of the year, and the pathogen of Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever was found in 55 ticks. At the end of May, it was reported that ticks had bitten 568 people in the region, two of whom were hospitalized with symptoms of hemorrhagic fever.
The Turkestan region is classified as an endemic area for this infection, and an increase in the number of tick bites is usually observed during the spring and summer. In this regard, specialists recommend: when visiting nature or working with domestic livestock, wear closed clothing and regularly check the body for ticks.
The article also mentions that there were previous reports of an Ebola outbreak in the DR Congo and Uganda, which may have originated from a new transmission of the virus from animals to humans, although the exact source of infection has not yet been determined. This virus was then transmitted between people for some time, and the first cases of illness may have occurred as early as January, before the official announcement of the outbreak.