The outbreak of a mysterious virus killed three people in Bolivia

The Minister of Health, Gabriela Montaño, said that "unfortunately, we saw that her general situation had deteriorated and that her prognosis was reserved because she was suffering from multiple organ failure, such as the deceased doctor Gustavo Vidales ".

Ortiz contracted the virus when patient Ximena Cuellar, an internal doctor at Caranavi Hospital, a town more than 160 km north of La Paz, was transferred to La Paz, or about four hours by land transport. He had an intubation in the ambulance.

Ximena Cuellar died on July 4 in a hospital in La Paz after being treated by doctor Gustavo Vidales, who died on Wednesday, July 10. Vidales also contracted the virus after performing a endoscopy

The viral disease patient, unidentified, is Macario Gironda, a 65-year-old farmer who was treated at Caranavi hospital by internal doctor Ximena Cuellar. There are three dead and one seriously hospitalized.

Results are expected on the type of virus

The World Health Organization (WHO) and the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), as well as the Ministry of Health and the Departmental Health Service (Headquarters), have been in charge of the concern of the population and mainly protests from the Medical College of La Paz.

They said that they were waiting for the the results detection of the type of virus to be treated, after which the samples were sent to the Center for Disease Control of Atlanta in the United States (CDC for its acronym in English). The authorities have asked the citizens serenity because the bud is contained, but not speculation on social networks.

Alfonso Tenorio, representative of WHO / PAHO, said: "As an OPS, we are aware that the hatching is contained and is not closed. There have been no suspicious cases in recent weeks, however, ongoing surveillance of people who have been contacts of confirmed persons. And if a new case appears, the country is able to respond. "

According to the head of epidemiology of the Ministry of Health, Jhemis Molina, there is an unusual event that does not deserve to be eliminated. epidemiological alert because it does not meet the criteria set out in international protocols, let alone a health emergency. However, this is not excluded. For the time being, there would be no risk of mbadive contagion and less migration of the virus to other neighboring countries.

Shortly spent outside the body

"It's a labile virus that has little time to stay out of the bodybecause he needs a living cell to be present. With a very simple disinfection of bleach or sodium hypochlorite, it can be easily removed if there is suspicion of this virus. Contagion occurs only through direct contact with human fluids, as would have been the case with doctors who practiced medical maneuvers to save the lives of infected patients, "reported Molina.

With the help of medical experts brought to Bolivia with the support of WHO / PAHO, the epidemiological hypothesis of the arenavirus has been confirmed, excluding other fever and haemorrhagic diseases existing in the country, such as dengue or hantavirus.

Hilarion Flores, a young man in his twenties, badistant to the late farmer Macario Gironde, was only released from the hospital following intensive care.

"This patient he survivedhe came out of the hospital but not from a doctor, which shows that it is an event occurring in a cluster He was treated unaware that it was an arenavirus, considering him as a dengue haemorrhagic virus. Samples were taken. The incubation period of the disease can go up to 21 days. People who have had contact with people who are infected or infected with the virus have not had symptoms so far, suggesting that the transmissibility is low, "said Molina.

The authorities also claim that it is badumed that it is an arenavirus that already existed in the country or in another neighboring country and that factors derived from global warmingHydrological changes, rains, floods and deforestation could have migrated to other areas through rodents infected with the virus.

"We are with a team from northern La Paz carrying out mastozoological research to confirm the presence of the rodent type, not only the Calomys, which transmits this one, but there are other types of rodents that we wish to identify. "

Until now, the commission of specialists who had settled in Yungas, in the presence of some type of arenavirus, had found rodents, but not of the Calomys type.

Fear of an epidemiological emergency

On the other side of the conflict, the president of the Medical College of La Paz, Luis Larrea, felt that he had not acted properly in what he considered an epidemiological and health emergency. asked the Bolivian health authorities to recognize that he had acted with time. in the case of deceased doctors.

"We must accept, and it is courageous, that we acted late, that we did not establish the diagnosis, that we did not follow the first case. Arenaviral Ribavirin is used, it is used at a given time and has not been administered in time. In addition, she arrived orally when she had to be injected intravenously, for which more than 10 days were expected, "said Larrea.

This week began the demonstrations of doctors who ask the authorities to declare themselves in a state of health alert. The Union doctors of La Paz Associated Medical Antennas (SIRMES) held a protest rally on the occasion of the deaths of their colleagues, Ximena Cuéllar and Gustavo Vidales.

According to Fernando Romero, executive secretary of SIRMES, "if a health alert had been declared, only security measures would be needed, such as water purification and cooking food from the municipality of Caranavi, where the rodent is carrying the virus. "

Faced with these questions, Jhemis Molina replied: "Viral diseases have no cure, unlike bacterial or parasitic diseases that have a more specific treatment because they neutralize or eliminate the disease. parasite In the case of viruses, these have the ability to bind to the cell as in the case of the arenavirus. There is no treatment that eliminates the virus, the antiviral treatments we applied in both medical patients are intended to reduce a little viral action. increase the immune system and administration of hyperimmune plasma. The doctors followed all the treatments to make the symptoms disappear, to keep them alive during the spread of the virus. "

On July 22, more expert doctors are expected to arrive to support the strengthening of diagnostic capacity.

By Gabriela Orozco.