A92.4: Rift Valley fever

The illness is caused by a virus. You can get infected by being bitten by an infected mosquito. With Rift Valley fever, you can get infected from infected sheep or cattle. You can become infected by coming into contact with damaged skin with raw animal flesh. You can also be infected by breathing the virus in or by drinking raw milk. Rift Valley fever occurs in Africa, the Arabian peninsular and Egypt.

The illness may not cause you any problems. You may also have fever, headaches and soreness in your limbs. With Rift Valley fever the brain may become inflamed. When the brain is inflamed you can lose consciousness or become confused. You can also suffer seizures. You may also be unable to move certain parts of your body properly. You may think and behave abnormally.

With Rift Valley fever the retina can also become inflamed. The retina is a layer inside the eye. It contains a lot of sensory cells that can perceive light. There are sensory cells for colors and sensory cells for light and dark. The sensory cells pass the information on to the nerve cells in the optic nerve. When the retina becomes inflamed your sight may be impaired.

Your liver can also become inflamed. This can cause jaundice or bleeding. The liver is an important organ on the top right of the abdomen. For example, it helps with blood clotting and detoxifying the body. Nutrients from food are processed in the liver. If your liver is not working properly your skin can turn yellow. Substances then accumulate in the skin that would normally be broken down by the liver. This skin discoloration is called jaundice.