The case is a 73 year-old man from the department of Maldonado (east of here) whose situation is being followed up.

The MSP weekly report indicates that there are 17 suspected cases of the disease: five in Montevideo, three in San José, two in Canelones, Río Negro and Soriano, and one each in Artigas, Paysandú and Rocha.

Of the four confirmed cases, a man detected in January in Montevideo is being followed up, while two patients registered in the neighboring department of San José have been discharged from the hospital.

Symptoms of the disease are sudden onset of fever, accompanied by headache or myalgia, vomiting, drowsiness, confusion, prostration or tremors.

Equine encephalitis is transmitted by mosquitoes, which are on the rise here, also causing the alert of health authorities for potential danger of dengue fever, with high incidence in neighboring Brazil.

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