Posted: 25th November 2015
Rift Valley Fever Virus (RVFV) is a mosquito-borne viral zoonosis which causes recurrent outbreaks of acute febrile illness in humans and livestock. Sheep, goats and cattle bear the brunt of RVFV through high rates of mortality in young animals and abortion in those that are pregnant. In humans, RVFV infection mostly presents as a self-limiting febrile illness but severe disease with high case fatality rates (>30% in some outbreaks) and debilitating sequelae (e.g. impaired vision) does occur. Since its isolation in Kenya in 1930 RVFV is now endemic in Africa and the Arabian Peninsula.