Infectologist Juan Carlos Celis, in dialogue with RPPwarned of an alarming enhancement of cases of yellow fever in our country, so far this year, mainly in native communities of the regions Amazonas, San Martín, Loreto, Huánuco, Junín.
The specialist indicated that this disease has characteristics very similar to dengue, even transmitted by the same mosquito, but differs due to its high mortality rate.
“This disease is very similar to dengue […]it is also transmitted by a mosquito. In fact, the same mosquito that transmits dengue in cities can also do the same with yellow fever. But, fortunately, there are no urban outbreaks of yellow fever many years ago and what we have is a outbreak basically in native and peasant communities of Amazonas, San Martín, Loreto, Huánuco, Junín, “he said.
“What do you have to know? Unlike dengue – which has a very low mortality of 0.1, 0.2 % – yellow fever It can have a mortality of 50 to 60 %, that has been reported in Peru and that is the dangerous of this disease, “he said.
According to Celis, until yesterday, Saturday, 12 deaths have been recorded in our country for this disease, of a total of 37 cases reported in 2025.
“Of the 37 cases that have been reported in Peru, we have, until yesterday’s update, 12 deaths. Most in Amazonas, San Martín, Huánuco, Loreto. What attracts attention is the increase with respect to the previous years […] In Amazonas, we have eight [fallecidos]; In San Martín we have three; And in Loreto, one, “he said.
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“Yellow fever vaccination rates are very low”
Celis indicated that yellow fever is a disease that can be prevented with vaccination, so we should not have more than a dozen dead. However, he warned of the decrease in the rate of inoculated people, especially in the jungle regions.
“This disease is Prevenible by vaccine And it’s not right, let’s say, we have deceased rates like 12 in this year, having a disease that is preventable by vaccine, which is free in Health establishments. The yellow fever vaccination rates are very low, “he said.
“The reports in 2023 speak of 60 % [de población vacunada] and, in peasant and native communities, border areas, where most cases are, as practically They do not reach 30 %. And that is the fundamental problem that we must solve, and also attract attention to travelers, the people who work in the areas. For example, in San Martín it is a classic, we know that everyone is dedicated to crop and go to cultivation areas. It is true that also, in Loreto, there are people who go to the cultivation of coca, drug trafficking and cause this movement of people to very remote areas and go without vaccine and that is increasing, not only in Peru, as I repeat, the same is happening in Brazil and Colombia, the mortality from yellow fever is increasing and that is calling attention to the Ministry of Health and WHO also, “he explained.
In that sense, he remarked that there are logistic problems to transport vaccines, which could not be solved due to the low budget granted by the Ministry of Health (Minsa).
“In Peru, I would say, especially, in Loretoin the areas of the Amazon in general, the problem is the great distances. Going to vaccinate Putumayo communities, for example, requires a great logistics issue to preserve vaccines. It is not that it is impossible, what happens is that they need to assign a special budget, “he emphasized.
“I remember a lot at the Covid era when we delivered a budget to vaccinate very remote areas. This is an onerous budget, because more than the vaccine itself is to preserve the cold chain and take it to areas that are 15, 16 days of travel, and that requires a special budget that can be done, but requires a whole strategy to take those vaccines to long distances where the native communities are You have to overcome in order to reach high vaccination rates, “he added.
Finally, Celis highlighted the difficulties that exist to properly diagnose yellow fever, due to its great similarity with dengue.
“Dengue has asymptomatic cases and yellow fever too. Dengue has cases that need to hospitalize, serious cases and yellow fever too. The same, this disease can give very soft paintings, as we have had recent Days, to this phase, which is called toxemia phase, where he made the famous vomiting with blood.
“Those patients who make this toxmic phase, as well as patients who dengue with alarm signs, have to handle themselves in a health establishment, if possible in an ICU, because they are quickly complicated and that is the difficulty of handling those cases in very remote areas,” he said.
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