Rare virus causes death in Madrid

IT was only as recently as 2011 that researchers in Spain discovered that an indigenous tick had the potential to carry the Crimean Congo Hemorrhagic Fever (CCHF) and this rather nasty virus, although primarily found in animals, can also affect humans.

Common symptoms can include headache, joint pain, stomach pain, red eyes and throat, mood swings, severe bruising and nose bleeds and can last as long as two weeks with a 30 per cent chance of death.

Now, two cases have been identified in Madrid and the first fatality, a 62-year-old man, has been reported with the second person said to be under close medical scrutiny in a Madrid hospital.

According to reports, these are the first cases to be recorded in Western Europe which have evolved locally rather than being caught abroad and brought in.