Mystery illness in S. Africa

Similar to Ebola: WHO probing deaths from mystery disease in SAfrica - Yahoo! News

The U.N. health agency says it is investigating a mystery disease that killed three people in the South African city of Johannesburg.

The World Health Organization says the disease appears to be a form of hemorrhagic fever.

It says tests have proved negative for Ebola, Lassa fever, Rift Valley fever, Marburg fever and other main types of hemorrhagic fever.

WHO spokesman Gregory Hartl says the first death on Sept. 13 was a tour guide who had fallen ill in Zambia before being evacuated to South Africa. Two further deaths on Sept. 30 and Oct. 4. involved a paramedic and a nurse who treated the woman.

Hartl said Friday that 121 people are being monitored and WHO hopes to receive further test results by Sunday.

More on story: News - Front Page: Nursing sister's condition worsens

The condition of a nursing sister being treated for viral haemorrhagic fever in the Morningside Medi-Clinic has become serious as the disease progresses, Medi-Clinic's Northern Region marketing manager Melinda Pelser said on Friday.

"Antiviral treatment continues."

A tour operator from Zambia, a paramedic who accompanied her to South Africa for treatment, and a health worker who came into contact with her, have died since September 14.

Six people, including the two people who were discharged earlier this week, had been admitted and discharged under the clinic's monitoring protocol.

"Monitoring continues of everyone on our contact list of 94 people who had close contact with any of the people who developed the disease.

This monitoring is carried out at home or at work, and the results are telephoned in to Morningside Medi-Clinic.

"Anyone who shows a change in temperature is brought into the hospital for increased temperature monitoring as part of this conservative monitoring protocol," Pelser said. - Sapa

Update: iafrica.com | news | sa news Arena virus nurse stable


The nursing sister being treated for an arena virus is still in a serious condition at the Morningside Medi Clinic, a spokesperson said on Monday.
"She is still serious, but stable," said Melinda Pelser.


She was admitted earlier in October after developing symptoms of the virus which has been linked to the deaths of three other people treated at the clinic.


A paramedic and another nursing sister are believed to have contracted it initially from a South African woman flown in from Zambia with what was initially thought to have been tick bite fever.


Pelser said 94 people who may have come into contact with the three are still being monitored but so far nobody else has been admitted.

If anyone shows a change in temperature they will be brought into the hospital for closer monitoring.


The arena virus causes a type of haemorrhagic fever and is associated with small rodents.


A Gauteng health department task team declared the hospital safe for patients, visitors and medical procedures last week, after endorsing its infection control procedures.