YELLOW FEVER?
Have you ever wondered about or asked for the reason why yellow fever was called yellow fever?
If you have been following this blog, you will agree with me that we have been discussing about some diseases that are transmitted by Mosquitoes.
Amongst them is also this particular one that was funnily called Yellow Fever.
Via this blog, I have also informed you that there are different kind of mosquitoes, in which one of them is the Aedes mosquito. Now, it is this particular mosquito that transmits the virus that causes yellow fever and yeah you read that well, yellow fever is a viral disease and you know that viral diseases can be very deadly and of course difficult to treat and this is exactly where the saying "prevention is better than cure" holds a lot of water.
This particular disease has been said to be endemic in Africa and South America. For those in Nigeria, the endemic foci in Nigeria are Cross Rivers, Benue and Ile-Ife.
One thing that is worthy of note is the fact that the virus that causes yellow fever which is known as the Flavi-Virus is transmitted by Mosquitoes... Aedes mosquito to be precise and I will also tell you how the virus gets transmitted. Foremost, the virus is in the salivary glands of the mosquitoes. This occurs when the mosquito feeds on the blood of an infected human being or even other primates like monkeys. After some time, the virus begins to multiply itself in the body tissue of the mosquitoes. There's every necessity for it to multiply if it really wants to cause disease in its next host. Multiplication is the deal. After maturation and multiplication of the flavi viruses, they return to the salivary glands.. fully armed to be transmitted. They wait patiently till the time the mosquito wants to feed. To the viruses, the patient dog eats the fattest bone, lol and then they follow through the saliva into the blood of another human being when the aedes mosquito feeds.
In the Human body now, the virus after gaining entrance, then multiplies in the liver. After a few days, the virus spreads throughout the body and causes symptoms like fever, headache, muscle aches, and jaundice. In severe cases, the disease can cause liver failure, kidney failure, or bleeding.
The viruses have the ability to break down Red Blood Cells.. the cells that help carry oxygen in our bodies. When Red Blood Cells break down, they release a by product known as Bilirubin.It is usually conjugated by the liver but when a lot of red blood cells are broken down, they overwhelm the liver's ability to conjugate them and they begin to roam about in the blood.
Now, The name "yellow fever" actually came from the yellowing of the skin and eyes that sometimes occurs in severe cases of the disease. The yellowing is caused by a build-up of that substance called bilirubin, which I said is a byproduct of the breakdown of red blood cells. The yellowing is called jaundice, and it can also cause the whites of the eyes to turn yellow. The disease got its name because of this very particular distinctive symptom.
It is also worthy to note that there is no treatment for yellow fever. It can only be managed. Well, it is preventable by vaccination. Also, to prevent and reduce the risk of coming down with yellow fever, try as much as possible to control the growth of mosquitoes around you. If you have been following this blog, you would have read on how to control mosquitoes as I had posted about this. If you're just coming across this blog, do well to read previous blogs.
Also, make sure to like, comment and share this particular post so that others can learn.
My goal is to see a healthier world and people get to know how to take care of themselves when they're exposed to information and this is why I am here.
Cheers to Infinity and Beyond.