The virologist listed dangerous infections at resorts popular with Russians

Virologist, Academician of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Doctor of Biological Sciences Sergey Netesov named five dangerous infections at popular Russian holiday resorts.

In conversation with aif.ru On Friday, January 30, he noted that Thailand, Vietnam, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Maldives, Sri Lanka and Indonesia remain among the popular destinations among Russians.

According to the expert, in addition to the Nipah virus, other infections are common in tropical countries — yellow fever, Dengue, Japanese encephalitis and Zika virus. These diseases have existed there for thousands of years and are transmitted through the bites of tropical mosquitoes. He stressed that in resort areas and cities, territories are regularly treated for insects, and the tropics themselves have historically been a habitat for both humans and viruses.

Netesov noted that relevant Russian agencies and research centers, including Rospotrebnadzor and leading medical institutes, are well aware of such infections.

Assessing the risk of infection of tourists, the expert explained that in terms of probability it is extremely low and largely depends on the behavior of the travelers themselves. If you follow basic protective measures and avoid visiting the jungle without repellents, the risk is minimal. However, during extreme recreation, such as river rafting, the probability of contracting the same Dengue fever may increase significantly.

He added that dozens of cases of Dengue fever are imported to Russia every year, most often to large cities. In general, according to him, the level of danger is directly determined by how cautiously tourists behave.

Vladimir Dedkov, Deputy Director for Scientific Work at the Pasteur St. Petersburg Research Institute of Epidemiology and Microbiology of Rospotrebnadzor, said on January 29 that the Nipah virus is not new and does not pose a threat to Russia. The expert added that the disease belongs to natural focal infections and is associated with flying foxes, large bats that live in tropical regions and are not found in Russia.

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