Erbil Health Directorate records the first suspected case of hemorrhagic fever

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Erbil Health Directorate announced the registration of the first suspected case of hemorrhagic fever.

In a statement to Kurdistan 24, Erbil Health Director Dlovan Mohammed said that the Rapreen Children's Hospital received a two-and-a-half-year-old baby, suspected of having hemorrhagic fever.

He said that the doctors suspected that the child had the disease, and took blood samples from him to send to the general laboratory for confirmation.

Mohammed also explained that the infant had come from central Iraq to Erbil, which made “our suspicions grow since the disease is widely spread in central and southern provinces of Iraq.”

Mohammed explained the disease’s severity and told Kurdistan 24 that the Ministry of Health has coordinated with the Ministry of Agriculture to adopt several measures to prevent its spread, particularly in slaughterhouses.

He also pointed out that hemorrhagic fever is not something new to Iraq, despite this year’s infection rate being higher than in previous years. 

Yesterday, the Iraqi Ministry of Health announced the registration of eight deaths and more than 40 cases of hemorrhagic fever in all provinces, half of them in Dhi Qar.