A man from South C, Nairobi, who had been diagnosed with yellow fever was discharged from Kenyatta National Hospital on Thursday evening.
The man, whose name was kept confidential, got past the three-to-four-day acute phase and cannot infect others, said acting medical services director Jackson Kioko.
“He cannot infect anyone even if he is bitten by a mosquito but he is still being monitored by our surveillance team,” Kioko told The Star on Friday.
The survivor contracted the virus in Angola where he had worked as a shopkeeper for ten years.
He sought medical attention in South C after returning to the country but was referred to KNH.
He was Kenya's second case of the disease.
The first case was of a man who had also returned from Angola. He was referred from a clinic in Eastleigh estate to KNH where he died on Wednesday.
Kioko said Kenya was not experiencing a domestic outbreak because the two cases were imported.
“There is therefore
need
for mass vaccination. Kenyans travelling to
high risk
countries must get vaccinated,” he said.
Vaccination is the most important preventive measure against yellow fever because the disease has no cure.
Nairobi county health officials fumigated large parts of Eastleigh and South C estates on Friday to kill mosquitoes.
“The only way yellow fever spreads is through mosquito bites. We want to advocate serious preventive measures to avert the spread,” he said.
County Health executive Bernard
Muia
said the survivor and his family were advised on how to protect themselves from mosquito bites.
Muia urged Nairobi residents
to sleep under treated nets and clear bushes to stop mosquito breeding.
“This mosquito (Aedes Egypti) likes biting people during the day. People in Nairobi, if
possible, should apply repellents on their bodies," he added.
"If you experience any fever, general weakness of the body and yellowness of the eyes, seek medical advice immediately."
Muia
said funds for fumigation and a health campaign have been set aside.
Yellow fever is spread
through
the bite of an infected mosquito. Once contracted, the virus incubates in the body for three to six days.
In the first phase, patients experience fever, muscle pain with
prominent backache, headache, shivers, loss of appetite, and nausea or vomiting.
Most patients improve, their symptoms ceasing, after three to four days, and
recover without significant organ damage.
Fifteen per cent
enter a second more
toxic phase in which they develop jaundice, experience abdominal pain and vomit.
Bleeding can occur from the mouth, nose, eyes or stomach. Half of patients who enter the toxic phase die within 10 to 14 days.