Description of the situation
26 August 1998
Disease Outbreak Reported
A total of 24 confirmed cases of yellow fever with 9 deaths has recently been reported to the Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO)/WHO for the period February to May 1998. Sixteen cases (68%) were male and 8 (32%) were female. The age distribution of the cases was: 33% over 30 years; 29% 20-29 years; and 38% 10-19 years. Sixteen cases were known not to have been vaccinated, 2 were reported to have been vaccinated and the status of 6 was unknown.
Twenty-one cases occurred in Pará State, (17 in Afuá Municipality, and 1 each in Bannach, Gurupá, Óbidos and Rendenção municipalities), 2 cases occurred in Amazonas State; and 1 sporadic case in Marcolândia municipality in the northern part of Mato Grosso State. Yellow fever has previously been reported in all of these areas.
In Pará State, 53 municipalities with a population of 3.1 million (approximately 60 % of the total population of the State) are considered to be high risk areas and vaccination of the whole population is planned during 1998. In Afuá municipality nearly 85% of the total population of 26,000 have been vaccinated in the past months.
The PAHO/WHO Regional Office for the Americas, is cooperating with the Ministry of Health to define priorities for control strategies and to improve the surveillance of yellow fever.