Update: outbreak of Rift Valley Fever--Saudi Arabia, August-November 2000

Abstract

On September 10, 2000, the Ministry of Health (MOH), Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and subsequently, the MOH of Yemen began receiving reports of unexplained hemorrhagic fever in humans and associated animal deaths and abortions from the far western Saudi-Yemeni border region. These cases subsequently were confirmed as Rift Valley fever (RVF), the first such cases on the Arabian peninsula. This report updates the findings of the ongoing investigation conducted by the Saudi Arabian MOH in collaboration with CDC and the National Institute of Virology, South Africa.