The presence of the Oropouche virus in Cuba was detected last May and to date 506 cases of the disease have been confirmed, said Dr. Francisco Durán García, National Director of Epidemiology of the Ministry of Public Health, at a press conference yesterday.
Durán García said that at this moment there are no critical cases or deaths due to the disease, although he acknowledged that there were cases with complications of meningitis, but all of them progressed favorably.
He added that there is transmission in 172 health areas in 99 municipalities, in the 15 provinces of the country.
The National Director of Epidemiology argued that, unlike previous months, there are now new experiences, especially in Brazil, where there have been cases which have progressed unfavorably, including two deaths. It is also the country with the highest number of cases, he said.
He cited the existence in that Amazonian territory of fetal deaths, four newborns with microcephaly, vertical transmission (mother to child), miscarriages, encephalitis and meningitis, complications that make Cuba remain vigilant about the transmission of the disease and the follow-up of suspected cases.
The epidemiologist stressed that there is no vaccine or antiviral treatment for the disease, and that the indications for medication are based on the specific symptoms manifested by each patient.
He reminded that any symptom such as headache, joint pain, vomiting, diarrhea and fever should be treated by a doctor, as it is urgent to make a correct diagnosis, since there is co-circulation of several arboviruses such as dengue, which develops serious clinical outcomes and can be life-threatening.
In this sense, the National Director of Epidemiology pointed out that in other countries there have been cases of simultaneous infection with Oropouche and dengue, but in Cuba this type of infection is not registered.
Regarding the information that has been circulating recently about Cuba being an exporter of the virus or its matrix, Durán García explained that this is a virus that has been circulating in the region for several years, and this year it arrived in Cuba.
He said that the country is not one of the countries with the highest number of confirmed cases, but since there is transmission due to the existence of vectors that spread the disease, there are possibilities of contagion for all people who are in the national territory.
