18 May 2013 (11:11 UTC-07 Tango)/08 Rajab 1434/28 Ordibehest 1391/09 Ding-Si (4th month) 4711

Today, the (south) Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that five people are showing signs of SFTS, but so far have tested negative.

One person has died, two in critical condition and two considered to be recovering.  More testing has been done, with results expected next week.

Since 2009 the new killer virus, with an estimated kill rate of 12% to 30%, has been spreading(?) from China.  It’s called Severe Fever with Thrombocytopenia Syndrome, and is thought to originate with mites/ticks.

It’s known that at least 200 people in China were infected.  97% of infections were in farmers living in grasslands and it’s assumed they got sick from ixodid ticks in their region.   However, rat mites and household dust mites do not appear to carry SFTS.

It took until 2011 before researchers identified the new virus.  Chinese researchers did admit they could not find direct connection between ticks and human infections, they only assumed the connection because most sick people live in areas with high tick/mite populations.

It was also noted that many farmers’ livestock were infected, yet there was no indication of SFTS being passed from livestock to humans.  In one example; the majority of goat herds tested showed infection, yet most of the people infected were not involved with goat farming, and only one goat herder got infected.

Then, at the beginning of this year cases were reported in Japan, at least five people died.  Several of those deaths happened at the end of 2012, but it took awhile before scientist identified the cause.   By the end of February more than 30 possible cases were being investigated.  By the end of April there were 11 confirmed cases.

Here’s the problem in Japan; unlike in China where researchers were able to trace (by assumption) the SFTS to ticks/mites, in Japan no tick has been found infected with SFTS.  Japanese researchers do not know how humans are getting infected.

Also, officials with Japan’s National Institute of Infectious Diseases say the SFTS in their country is slightly different than the one in China.  It appears the virus is undergoing independent evolution in different Asian locations.

Health officials are warning that SFTS causes high fever, diarrhea, vomiting, consciousness degradation, elevated liver enzymes, multiple organ failure, thrombocytopenia (low blood platelets), leukopenia (low white blood cells) and death.

China has reported a new case, in Zhejiang Province.  A man checked into a hospital with fever and bleeding gums.  On 15 May he was confirmed to have SFTS.  It’s unknown how he got sick, he was not bitten by ticks or mites.

In 2010 there were studies suggesting the new SFTS is a human to human virus.

There is no vaccine or treatment for SFTS.