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Yellow fever got its name because of its ability to cause a person's skin to turn a yellow color. This is a result of liver damage.
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It is believed that yellow fever likely originated in Africa. From there it was brought to North America, Central America, and South America likely from the slave trade.
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There have been several serious outbreaks of yellow fever documented in history.
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In the 1600s a serious outbreak occurred in the Yucatan Peninsula.
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In the late 1700s New England and other port cities in North America suffered severe yellow fever outbreaks, including the outbreak in Philadelphia in 1793 that killed 10% of its population.
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In 1905 New Orleans suffered a severe yellow fever outbreak. It was the last major one in North America.
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In the late 1800s a Cuban doctor named Dr. Carlos Finlay theorized that yellow fever was caused by infected mosquitos.
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In the early 1900s U.S. Army Major Dr. Walter Reed proved that Dr. Finlay's theory was correct.
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The first yellow fever vaccine was created in the 1930s by Max Theiler.
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Max Theiler's vaccine was used to help eliminate and to control outbreaks in African and South American countries into the mid-1900s.
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The yellow fever virus can be transmitted from humans to humans or from monkeys to humans. This occurs by mosquito bites.
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Most (90%+) of cases of yellow fever occur in Africa. The rest are in Central and South America.
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Although yellow fever has not been found in Asia, it could occur there as well because of the primate population and type of mosquitos found there.
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Although there is a vaccine to protect humans against yellow fever, once a person has been infected there is no specific treatment.
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Once infected the treatment of yellow fever involves trying to lessen the symptoms. There is not a cure.
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There are two types of yellow fever. One type is called sylvatic, which is also known as jungle yellow fever. The other is urban yellow fever.
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Yellow fever is present in at least 30 countries in Africa.
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In the Americas yellow fever is most common in Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador, Columbia, and Peru.
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The best way to avoid contracting yellow fever is to ensure one is immunized before travelling to countries that have yellow fever.
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Mosquito repellant can also help deter infected mosquitos from biting.
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