5 children contract  equine encephalitis

Five cases of equine encephalitis all in children, have been detected in the province of Darién reports the incoming Minister of Health, Rosario Turner.

The disease is transmitted by the bite of an infected culex mosquito, which attacks the neurological system, causes disorientation, decreased reflexes and movements of the arms and legs. The usual victims are the horse and the human being.

Meanwhile, the current minister of this portfolio, Miguel Mayo, said that at the moment is being determined whether it is Venezuelan equine encephalitis or the east type ,  both of which have circulated in Panama.  

Mayo said  that currently patients are being treated at the José Renán Esquivel Children’s Hospital.