by Jerilee Wei

Created on: June 09, 2008   Last Updated: June 11, 2008

If this disease was a newspaper headline, it would read: "Danger! Once banished from America, Yellow Jack is alive and well in South America and in sub-Saharan Africa." Yellow Jack is a nickname for the disease, yellow fever. The name stems from a not-so-funny cartoon figure, depicting a violent skeletal bandit who stole human lives. Once one of the horrendous curses of the world, yellow fever is still a serious and sometimes fatal illness caused by a flavivirus.

In yellow fever history, people believed this malady was spread by unhealthy air. The rich would flee to cooler country homes, while the poor would often board up their houses and keep fireplaces burning to ward off the summer air. Past generations were so fearful of this disease, that when people died, their clothing, personal possessions, beds, and sometimes homes were torched. All sorts of cures and remedies were tried, many of them proving more fatal than the yellow fever.

Today, we know that the yellow fever virus is spread by the bite of an infected mosquito. The yellow fever mosquito is the "Aedes aegypti." It can also spread dengue fever, Chikungunva, and other diseases. Once bitten, anyone can get yellow fever, but the elderly have a higher risk of complications and death.

If you are planning to travel to countries still battling this disease, here are yellow fever's symptoms:

EARLY SYMPTOMS OF YELLOW FEVER

Arrhythmias (heart dysfunction)
Chills
Constipation
Decreased urination
Fever
Headache
Jaundice
Loss of Appetite
Muscle aches
Red eyes, face, and tongue
Vomiting

Yellow fever begins suddenly after an incubation of only three to five days. In most cases, the symptoms are mild and patients make a full recovery within a week. Once contracted, if you recover, you will have a lifelong immunity against re-infection.

In it's earliest stage, yellow fever can be mistaken for other diseases, such as dengue fever, malaria, hemorrhagic viral fevers, etc. It is important to get a proper and early diagnosis, by both a blood test and physician.

REMISSION PERIOD:

After 3-4 days of early stage illness, the fever and other symptoms will go away briefly. Most people will recover, however, others will shift into a third, most perilous stage of the disease within twenty-four hours.

PERIOD OF INTOXICATION:

Bleeding (may progress to hemorrhage)
Coma
Death
Delirium
Disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC)
Parotitis
Secondary bacterial infections
Seizures
Shock
Vomiting Blood
Liver and kidney failure

There is no

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