Yellow Fever
May/June 2008 ISSN-1059-6518 Volume 21 Number 3
By Frank Hubbell, DO
Yellow fever is an acute hemorrhagic viral illness caused by the yellow fever arbovirus of the genus Flavivirus, family Flaviviridae. It occurs in many African, Central and South American countries, and several Caribbean Islands. There is an effective vaccine. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that there are about 200,000 cases per year with about 30,000 deaths, with the highest proportion in sub-Saharan Africa. The name refers to the yellow color of the conjunctiva and skin that occurs from the liver jaundice that affects many patients.
