Sandfly fever in Lebanon

ABSTRACT

An outbreak of an acute, self-limiting febrile illness characterised by headache, myalgia and polyarthralgia with or without leucopenia occurred in the Akkar, Menieh, Dinnieh districts, North Province, Lebanon, from 1 July to 18 September 2007. On 7th September 2007 the Ministry of Public Health, Lebanon, notified WHO of the outbreak and requested technical support to investigate the event . In response, WHO mobilised a medical epidemiologist/public health physician and a vector control expert to assist the national authorities in conducting risk assessment, outbreak investigation, and advise on control measures. Field activities included collection and shipment of sera for examination at a WHO Collaborating Centre for arbovi ruses, and carried out vector trapping and entomological studies. More than 800 cases and no death were reported during the outbreak period. Acute and convalescent sera tested at in UBIVE Institut Pasteur, Lyon, France, a WHO Collaborating Centre for Arboviruses, confirmed the outbreak as Sandfly fever caused by Phleboviruses, members of the Bunyavirus group