Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever cases in the eastern Black Sea Region of Turkey: demographic, geographic, climatic, and clinical characteristics

Abstract

Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) is a disease that is known since 1944 affecting many people across the world and causing a high mortality rate. The aim of this study was to determine the epidemiological and clinical characteristics of the CCHF cases in our region. Materials and methods: The present study was conducted in patients with CCHF who were hospitalized between 2004 and 2006 at Karadeniz Technical University. Demographic, geographic, climatic, and clinical characteristics of all patients were investigated. Results: A total of 102 patients with confirmed CCHF were investigated in this study. All of the patients were from rural areas. Eighty-seven patients (85.2%) were livestock workers. None of the cases was from the region where mountain range faced the sea and all cases were from areas of Harşit, Kelkit, and Çoruh valleys situated at 1100-2265 m above sea level where the mountain ranges ceased to separate the sea and inner regions and streams reached the sea. Conclusion: CCHF case series have been reported from Turkey as well and particularly Middle Anatolia and northeastern regions have been determined as endemic areas recently. Population of those regions mostly earns their life from livestock breeding and agriculture, which increases the risk of exposure to ticks and development of CCHF. Therefore, especially in cases coming from regions categorized as endemic, it has been concluded that mortality can be reduced by carefully taken medical history and practice of rapid medical treatment and replacement therapies in consideration of CCHF pre-diagnosis.