This finding, together with the recent identification of imported cases, raises concerns about the risk of dissemination and establishment of this neglected virus in urban areas outside the Amazon region.
Viral study
Navika says that scientists have been warning since 2016 about the need to expand the scope of testing to monitor the potential spread of the disease. “We said it was necessary to test negative dengue cases to see if there was a possibility they were infected with oroboche fever and mayaro fever,” he says.
Because of this history, we have developed a real-time PCR protocol to facilitate the simultaneous detection of Oropouche and mayaro. Since 2016 we have been training different laboratories to conduct testing.
Felipe Navica
Training initially took place in government laboratories in Roraima, Mato Grosso do Sul, Amazonas and Acre. After noticing positive cases, the Ministry of Health decided to decentralize and conduct testing in all Lasenses (central state laboratories) in Brazil. “That's why they've now discovered cases all over the country,” Navika says.
In addition to improving epidemiological surveillance in the states, Navika believes that the disease has gained strength this year due to the unusually hot period that the country is experiencing, with the El Niño phenomenon, which helps the Marueme to reproduce.
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