Machupo virus

Bolivian hemorrhagic fever (BHF), also known as black typhus or Ordog Fever, is a hemorrhagic fever and zoonotic infectious disease originating in Bolivia after infection by Machupo mammarenavirus.

BHF was first identified in 1963 as an ambisense RNA virus of the Arenaviridae family, by a research group led by Karl Johnson. The mortality rate is estimated at 5 to 30 percent. Due to its pathogenicity, Machupo virus requires Biosafety Level Four conditions, the highest level.

During the period between February and March 2007, some 20 suspected BHF cases (3 fatal) were reported to the Servicio Departamental de Salud (SEDES) in Beni Department, Bolivia. In February 2008, at least 200 suspected new cases (12 fatal) were reported to SEDES. In November 2011, a second case was confirmed near the departmental capital of Trinidad, and a serosurvey was conducted to determine the extent of Machupo virus infections in the department. A SEDES expert involved in the survey expressed his concerns about the expansion of the virus to other provinces outside the endemic regions of Mamoré and Iténez provinces.