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Review
. 2019 Sep 13;153(5):205-212.
doi: 10.1016/j.medcle.2019.03.013. Epub 2019 Jul 27.

Fever in travellers returning from the tropics

Francisco Jiménez-Morillas  1 , Manuel Gil-Mosquera  1 , Eric Jorge García-Lamberechts  2 ; INFURG-SEMES tropical diseases department
Affiliations
Review

Fever in travellers returning from the tropics

Francisco Jiménez-Morillas et al. Med Clin (Engl Ed). .

Abstract
in English, Spanish

The increase in international travel, the growing presence of arbovirus vectors in our country, and notifications of haemorrhagic fever such as the current outbreak of Ebola in D.R. Congo and the cases of Crimea-Congo haemorrhagic fever in our country have again cast the spotlight on tropical diseases. Isolating suspected cases of highly contagious and lethal diseases must be a priority (haemorrhagic fever, MERS-CoV). Assessing the patient, taking a careful medical history based on epidemiological aspects of the area of origin, activities they have carried out, their length of stay in the area and the onset of symptoms, will eventually help us, if not to make a definitive diagnosis, at least to exclude diseases that pose a threat to these patients. Malaria should be ruled out because of its frequency, without forgetting other common causes of fever familiar to emergency doctors.

El incremento de los viajes internacionales, la creciente presencia de vectores transmisores de arbovirusen nuestro país, las alertas de fiebres hemorrágicas, como el actual brote de ébola en la R. D. del Congoy los casos autóctonos de fiebre hemorrágica de Crimea-Congo en nuestro país, ponen de nuevo enprimer plano las enfermedades tropicales. El aislamiento de los casos sospechosos de enfermedades dealta transmisibilidad y letalidad ha de ser una prioridad (fiebres hemorrágicas, MERS-CoV). Al valorar alpaciente, una cuidadosa historia clínica basada en los aspectos epidemiológicos de la zona de procedencia,las actividades realizadas, el tiempo de estancia en el mismo y el inicio de los síntomas nos ayudaránfinalmente, si no al diagnóstico definitivo, sí al menos a descartar las enfermedades que signifiquen unaamenaza para él. Por su frecuencia y gravedad la malaria debe ser descartada, sin olvidar las otras causashabituales de fiebre con las que el médico de urgencias debe estar familiarizado también.

Keywords: Fever; Haemorrhagic fever; Malaria; Traveller; Tropics.

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References

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