Case series of Oropouche fever among travellers returning from Cuba to Spain, 2024
Oropouche fever is a vector-borne disease endemic in Central and South America. Infection with Oropouche virus (OROV) was confirmed in June and July 2024 in 13 patients travelling from Cuba to Spain. These patients presented fever, headache, myalgia and arthralgia, and three patients exhibited a biphasic course, with two developing transient neurological symptoms. Oropouche virus infection was diagnosed using reverse transcription quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) and neutralisation tests. Viral RNA was detected in specimens from serum, urine, plasma and whole blood; from four urine samples up to 24 days post-symptom onset. Phylogenetic analysis of one OROV strain (OROV SP2024) isolated from one patient, demonstrated it clustered closely with reassortant strains circulating in Brazil and imported cases in Italy. These findings underscore the importance of including OROV in the differential diagnosis of febrile illnesses in returning travellers and demonstrate the diagnostic value of analysing multiple sample types. Enhanced clinical awareness and diagnostic capacity are essential to improve detection and surveillance of OROV among international travellers from affected regions.
Authors
- Araceli Hernández-Betancor
- Zaira Moure (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3613-6386)
- Ana Vázquez (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9872-3316)
- M Sempere (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2286-4630)
- Josune Goikoetxea (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1983-3742)
- Enrique Bernal (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0001-1753-9104)
- María Rosario Vicente
- Isabel Pérez‐Hernández (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8181-7156)
- Miguel Julián Martínez (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0682-1075)
- Francisco Javier Hernández (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0480-624X)
- Mikel Gallego (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2273-1985)
- Nuria Labiod (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7297-1162)
- María Paz Sánchez‐Seco (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9033-7704)
- Nelly Daniela Zurita
- Francesca Norman (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0336-7767)
- María Dolores Ocete
- Laura Cardeñoso (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8395-3370)
- Fernando Calle (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2544-3492)
- Juan Carlos Galán
- P. Alonso Alonso
- Daniel Camprubí-Ferrer
- Carlos Meilán
- Itxasne Cabezón
Institutions
- Universidad de Alcalá (ES)
- Hospital Universitario Insular de Gran Canaria (ES)
- Hospital Universitario La Paz (ES)
- Instituto de Salud Carlos III (ES)
- Capital Group (United States) (US)
- BioCruces Health research Institute (ES)
- Departament de Salut (ES)
- Hospital Leforte (BR)
- Centro Nacional de Microbiologia (ES)
- Instituto de Investigación Marqués de Valdecilla (ES)
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red (ES)
- Hospital Clínic de Barcelona (ES)
- Universidad Internacional De La Rioja (ES)
- Instituto Ramón y Cajal de Investigación Sanitaria (ES)
- Hospital General Universitario De Valencia (ES)
- Hospital Reina Sofía de Murcia (ES)
- Hospital Universitario de La Princesa (ES)
- Hospital de Cruces (ES)
- Instituto Murciano de Investigación Biosanitaria (ES)
- Barcelona Institute for Global Health (ES)
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Epidemiología y Salud Pública (ES)
- Hospital Clínico Universitario Virgen de la Victoria (ES)
- Hospital Universitario Ramón y Cajal (ES)
- Instituto de Investigación Biomédica de Málaga (ES)
- Universitat de Barcelona (ES)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Eurosurveillance
- Published
- 2025-10-16
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.2807/1560-7917.es.2025.30.41.2400719
- Citations
- 2
- Primary Topic
- Viral Infections and Vectors
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 2.79