NewsDesk  @infectiousdiseasenews

Officials in Shivamogga, Karnataka state have reported a case of the tick-borne, Kyasanur Forest Disease, (KFD) in a 57-year-old woman in Kudige village of Thirthahalli.

Public domain photo/Robin klein

This is the first case in the area in two years.

Shivamogga district health officer Dr Rajesh S uragihalli said, “The woman’s symptoms are mild. There is no cause for worry.”

In South Asia, Haemaphysalis spinigera tick transmits Kyasanur Forest Disease Virus (KFDV), a flavivirus that causes severe hemorrhagic fever with neurological manifestations such as mental disturbances, severe headache, tremors, and vision deficits in infected human beings with a fatality rate of 3–10%.

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The disease was first reported in March 1957 from Kyasanur forest of Karnataka from sick and dying monkeys. Since then, between 400 and 500 humans cases per year have been recorded; monkeys and small mammals are common hosts of this virus.