Facts

• A viral zoonosis causing disease
• Caused by phlebovirus, a member of the Bunyaviridae family
• Spread by infected mosquitoes and animals
• Mostly spreads when heavy rainfalls cause infected mosquito eggs to hatch and large numbers of susceptible animals are present
• Can only be transmitted from an animal to human or another animal
• First reported in Kenya in 1915
• Symptoms include: fever, headache, myalgia, and liver abnormalities 
• Fatality rate is 1% for humans and significantly higher for animals
• Could progress to hemorrhagic fever, encephalitis, or ocular disease
• There is a cure for animals after multiple inoculations; None for humans, but there are studies
• Occurs in most parts of Africa; Could spread further to all of Africa
•  Recent 2010 South African outbreak; eighty-seven were infected
• Last major human outbreak was in 1974-76, where 10,000 to 20,000 cases were affected