The Ministry of Health in Egypt decided to tighten health control procedures at all ports of entry into the country, whether on passengers, means of transportation, or goods coming from Israel, in a step primarily aimed at confronting the transmission of West Nile fever.
This comes after the health authorities in Israel announced the death of more than 36 people as a result of being infected with West Nile fever, in addition to recording 543 cases of infection as of last Thursday.
The Egyptian Health Preventive Medicine Sector issued a circular directed to all ports of entry, including airports, sea and land ports, calling on quarantine departments to activate and tighten health control procedures to prevent the infiltration of the virus causing the disease into the country.
The Ministry directed to take a number of preventive measures towards passengers, by conducting health screening for all those arriving on flights from Israel, whether directly or indirectly, by quarantine crews, using cameras, thermal gates, and temperature measuring devices, without interfering in the movement of passengers.
She pointed out "the necessity of referring cases suspected of being infected with the disease to hospitals to evaluate the condition, with immediate notification to ministry officials."
The Egyptian Ministry of Health obligated all airline companies and local agencies that operate routes with Israel, directly or indirectly, to exterminate insects on board before arriving at Egyptian airports and ports, in accordance with methods approved by the World Health Organization.
Why did Egypt issue the decision?
An Egyptian Ministry of Health official told Sky News Arabia that issuing a periodic quarantine book comes to raise the level of preparedness at various entry points to monitor any cases of this disease, or other epidemic diseases.
The official pointed out that there is a mechanism through which cases of outbreaks of epidemic diseases are reported, through the Coordinator of Regulations at the World Health Organization, but at the same time he stressed that Egypt has not been informed through this mechanism about anything new regarding the spread of West Nile fever.
He stressed that "however, the quarantine authorities continue to raise the state of preparedness and activate the necessary preventive measures to monitor any cases of infectious diseases at ports of entry," stressing that no suspected cases of the disease have been detected so far.
What is West Nile fever?
Clinical drug therapy consultant for infectious diseases, Dr. Dirar Balawi, said that as temperatures continue to rise in the region, concern about the spread of the West Nile virus increases.
Balawi explained that this virus is transmitted primarily through the bite of the Culex mosquito, and it spreads among birds. The mosquito becomes a carrier of the virus after it bites an infected bird, while when this mosquito bites a human, it can transmit the virus to him, causing infection.
However, he stressed that about 80 percent of those infected with West Nile virus do not experience any noticeable symptoms, while only about 20 percent experience mild flu-like symptoms.
Symptoms of West Nile fever are:
fever.
Headache.
body aches.
Nausea and vomiting.
Swollen lymph nodes.
Skin rash.
In rare cases (less than 1 percent), West Nile virus can cause serious complications, including encephalitis and meningitis, according to Balawi.
He added, "With the current climate changes and the expansion of the spread of mosquitoes, it is more important than ever to raise the level of community awareness about the virus and ways to prevent it."
Source: Sky News Arabia
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