By NewsDesk  @infectiousdiseasenews

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a travel notice this week for Bolivia. The notice is in response to an outbreak of hemorrhagic fever was recently reported in Bolivia, which is likely due to an arenavirus that appears similar to Chapare virus.

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The first case was in a man from Caranavi Province. A health care provider who treated him became ill and was transferred to La Paz. Currently, 5 cases have been reported; all have been in health care providers or family members of the first patient.

Testing suggests that the virus is genetically similar to Chapare virus, a New World arenavirus that was first documented in Bolivia in 2003.

Although the animal source for this virus has not been confirmed, CDC recommends travelers should avoid contact with rodents and rodent urine or feces and to avoid contact with people who are sick.

Arenaviruses are usually spread to people through contact with infected rodents or the urine or feces (droppings) of an infected rodent. Some arenaviruses have also been associated with secondary person-to-person spread, including spread in health care settings. While symptoms of arenaviruses can vary, New World arenaviruses have typically caused hemorrhagic fevers in people.