Rift valley fever medical therapy
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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Aakash Hans, MD[2]
Overview
Rift valley fever is a self limiting febrile illness. The mainstay of treatment is a conservative medical approach as most patients recover spontaneously. Ribavirin showed promise initially in decreasing the viral load, but was later found to have neurological side effects. If the fever returns after remission, it may signify the onset of a complicated course of the illness.
Medical Therapy
- Mainstay of treatment in most RVF patients is usually supportive with monitoring of body temperature and blood pressure.
- Fluids may be given to patients reporting weakness or low blood pressure.
- There is no specific recommendations for treatment for RVF by the FDA. [1]
- Drugs having renal, hepatic or coagulation side effects should be avoided in RVF patients.
- Ribavirin showed promise in rodent models but was stopped after development of neurological symptoms in some of the patients it was administered during the RVF outbreak in Saudi Arabia in the year 2000. [2]
Surgical Therapy
The mainstay of treatment for RVF is medical therapy. Surgery is usually not required in such cases.
Pharmacotherapy
Studies in monkeys and other animals have shown promise for ribavirin, an antiviral drug, for future use in humans. Additional studies suggest that interferon, immune modulators, and convalescent-phase plasma may also help in the treatment of patients with RVF.
References
- ↑ Hartman A. Rift Valley Fever. Clin Lab Med. 2017;37(2):285-301. doi:10.1016/j.cll.2017.01.004
- ↑ Bird BH, Reynes JM, Nichol ST. Rift Valley Fever. In: Magill AJ, Strickland GT, Maguire JH, Ryan ET, Solomon T, editors. Hunter’s Tropical Medicine and Emerging Infectious Disease. 9. Elsevier Health Sciences; 2012.
- ↑ Javelle E, Lesueur A, Pommier de Santi V, et al. The challenging management of Rift Valley Fever in humans: literature review of the clinical disease and algorithm proposal. Ann Clin Microbiol Antimicrob. 2020;19(1):4. Published 2020 Jan 22. doi:10.1186/s12941-020-0346-5