14 Indicative Symptoms of Yellow Fever

Are you considering a trip to Africa or South America? If so, you might want to go through this list of eight indicative symptoms of yellow fever. Infection with this virus occurs due to sustaining a bite from an infected mosquito.

Yellow fever has two stages to the disease, and not everyone infected with the virus receives the second stage symptoms – known as the acute phase. The toxic period of yellow fever has a 50-percent mortality rate. Unfortunately, there is no cure for yellow fever, and infected individuals will have to wait for the virus to run its course, receiving treatment for their symptoms as they occur.

However, some of the symptoms associated with the acute stage of the virus are easy to misinterpret as symptoms of another infection – such as the flu. If you’re traveling to a known high-risk area, it’s best to receive a yellow fever vaccine at least 4-weeks before your departure.

1.    Mosquito Bites

Since yellow fever occurs due to sustaining a bite from an infected mosquito – it should be your first indicative symptom of the disease. While not all mosquitos carry the virus, you should treat every bite in a high-risk zone as a potential threat to your health and contraction of the virus.

If you did not receive the yellow fever vaccine before your travel date, then make sure you take note of the days where you sustain mosquito bites. It’s next to impossible to avoid mosquitoes, but there are a few preventative strategies you can use to reduce your chances of being bitten.

Mosquitoes are most active in the early morning and evening. Wear long-sleeved clothes and pants during these hours to prevent bites. Purchase a mosquito repellant to ward off the mosquitoes, and regularly apply throughout the high-risk periods of the day.

Keep a can of insecticide spray in the bathroom, and spray around the base of the toilet in the morning before you use the facilities. Mosquitoes like to hide under the rim on the outside and attack your legs when you sit down.