Hemorrhagic Fever Types, Symptoms of Viral Hemorrhagic Fevers

Hemorrhagic fever refers to a potentially fatal health condition marked by fever and hemorrhaging. You hemorrhage because vascular damage creates increased vein permeability.

Viral hemorrhagic fevers are a group of health conditions consisting of distinct families of viruses that cause hemorrhagic fever symptoms. While some types of hemorrhagic fever viruses may only cause relatively minor illnesses, others can cause a severe disease.

Viruses causing hemorrhagic fevers are classified into arenaviruses, filoviruses, bunyaviruses, and flaviviruses types. And very rarely is hemorrhagic fever caused other viral and bacterial infections.

Arenaviruses type includes Lassa fever, Argentine hemorrhagic fever, Bolivian hemorrhagic fever, Brazilian hemorrhagic fever and Venezuelan hemorrhagic fever. Filoviruses consists of Ebola virus and Marburg viruses. Bunyaviruses grouping involves Rift Valley fever, Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever, hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome and hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. And finally, flaviviruses type includes yellow fever, dengue fever, dengue hemorrhagic fever, Kyasanur Forest disease and Omsk hemorrhagic fever.

For the most part, viruses associated with hemorrhagic fever are zoonotic, predominantly their natural hosts being particular rodents and arthropods. And because of this specificity, transmission is usually restricted where that specific host lives.

Although the rat, which is found nearly worldwide, is a host for various types of hantavirus that can cause hemorrhagic fever. And a couple hemorrhagic fever causing viruses are contagious, so a traveler can infect others outside a host territory. As such, the viruses that cause viral hemorrhagic fevers are essentially a global health concern. Albeit, the risk of catching this fever while on U.S. soil is extremely low.

Specific symptoms of viral hemorrhagic fever varies amongst this infectious disease types, but most will initially cause:

Hemorrhage type symptoms may appear, for instance flushing, petechiae, red eyes, bleeding gums and skin rash.

Symptoms of a severe infection may involve:

Additional symptoms will likely occur depending on the type of viral hemorrhagic fever you’re experiencing and severity, ranging from sore throat, headache, abdominal pain, photophobia, jaundice, dyspnea and so on.

Some hemorrhagic fever cause various complications, for example:

In fact, deaths caused by certain hemorrhagic fever types are substantial.

Generally, there’s no established cure or treatment for most viral hemorrhagic fevers. Symptom relief is often the extent of available care. And immunizations are limited to only two types.