SFTSV Bunyavirus

This virus is an emerging infectious disease first reported between late March and mid-July in China. It has since been discovered in Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, and Taiwan. It mostly occurs in wooded and hilly rural areas.

It is tick-borne but also infects many domesticated animals, such as sheep, goats, catte, pigs, dogs, and chickens. This type of bunyavirus causes severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS). It can be transmitted through person-to-person context. The major symptoms include fever, vomiting, diarrhea, multiple organ failure, thrombocytopenia (low platelet count), leukopenia (low white blood cell count), and elevated liver enzyme levels. It was first reported in China