Yellow Fever Virus Infection Symptoms, Yellow Fever Vaccination

Yellow fever is a flavivirus viral infection, transmitted via a bite from an infected mosquitoes.  This same virus family causes West Nile virus, dengue fever and some types of encephalitis as well.

And yellow fever turns up in tropical regions of Africa and South America.

There are two different manners of spreading this infection.  One is jungle yellow fever, in which humans are infected by mosquitoes that have previously feed on infected monkeys.

The other is urban yellow fever, wherein the infectious disease is spread human to human by city dwelling mosquitoes. Urban yellow fever is the cause for the percentage of outbreaks and epidemics.

Once infected with yellow fever, the course of this infection is broken into phases.  Initial stage develops within a 3 to 6 day range, causing stomach flu like symptoms, such as:

After a few days your symptoms go away. Most recover their health during this phase of remission. A few will transition in the most dangerous phase within a day.

Symptoms of a severe yellow fever infection may include:

A severe case of yellow fever can be fatal.

There is no specific treatment for yellow fever. NSAIDs may be suggested to treat your fever and body aches. Other life saving treatment measures will be taken in response to symptoms.

There is an effective, and relatively safe, vaccine against yellow fever. However, vaccination is not recommended if your immune system is impaired.  Nor if you are pregnant or breastfeeding.

So, if you are planning a trip to a yellow fever country, then get with your health care provider for a vaccination a couple of weeks ahead of departure.

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