Алхурма вирусы: Зерттеулер, таралуы және сақтану шаралары

Species of virus

Alkhurma virus (ALKV) (فيروس الخرمة) is a zoonotic virus of the Flaviviridae virus family (class IV). ALKV causes Alkhurma hemorrhagic fever (AHF), or alternatively termed as Alkhurma hemorrhagic fever virus, and is mainly based in Saudi Arabia.

Laboratory diagnosis of ALKV can be performed in the early stages of the illness by molecular detection of PCR or virus isolation from the blood. Serologic testing using enzyme linked immunosorbent serologic assay (ELISA) can be made afterward. Treatment consists of supportive therapy which balances the person's fluids and electrolytes, oxygen status and blood pressure monitored and maintained, and additional treatment for any further complications. The mortality rate of hospitalized patients ranges from 1 to 20%.

Due to limited information pertaining to ALKV, no specific treatment, such as a vaccine, has been created or made readily available. The best measures for combating ALKV are basic tick bite prevention, such as using tick repellents and avoiding regions where ticks are found in abundance, and raising awareness. Limiting non casual contact with livestock and domestic animals is also another way of prevention. Individuals should appropriately check for attached ticks and remove them as soon as possible if found. Tick collars for domestic animals and the use of acaricides are efficient in killing ticks on livestock. People working with animals or animal products in farms or slaughterhouses should refrain from making unprotected contact with the blood, tissues, or fluids (such as consuming unpasteurized milk) of any potentially infected animal.

The route of transmission for ALKV is not fully understood and is filled with huge knowledge gaps, though camels and sheep have been linked to be the natural hosts of this virus. There appears to be more than one possible route of transmission seen in people who have become infected with this virus: one or more bites by an infected tick, crushing an infected tick with unprotected fingers, ingestion of unpasteurised camel milk, or entry via a skin wound. There is evidence pointing to the sand tampan, Ornithodoros savignyi, as the vector. No cases of human human transmission of AHF have ever been recorded. The geographic distribution of the virus has extended beyond Saudi Arabia; reports of ALKV have been documented in countries where there is no endemic vector of the disease, such as Egypt, Djibouti, and India. In 2018, the tick species H. rufipes, another possible vector for this virus, has been found to be infecting migratory birds in Europe.

This virus was first isolated from the blood of a 32 year old male butcher at Dr. Soliman Fakeeh Hospital, Saudi Arabia during the 1990s, who became sick with an acute, fatal hemorrhagic fever after slaughtering a sheep imported from the small city of Alkhurma, Mecca province. Since then, over 40 cases of ALKV, with case fatality rates less than 1%, have been reported. ALKV is classified as a BSL 3 or BSL 4 agent, depending on the country's regulations.