MADRID, Spain.- The Cuban Ministry of Public Health (MINSAP) reported The number of confirmed cases of the Oropouche virus in the country has risen to 506 since the first infected person was detected last May. Health authorities again said that so far no serious cases or deaths have been reported due to this disease on the island, although various testimonies from the population suggest a different reality.
Francisco Durán, national director of Hygiene and Epidemiology at MINSAP, explained that the disease has spread to all 15 provinces of the country, affecting 99 municipalities and 172 health areas. According to Durán, 80% of suspected patients have received home treatment due to the mildness of their symptoms. He also stated that the number of affected people in Cuba is “the lowest in the Latin American and Caribbean region.”
However, these statements have been questioned by health professionals and citizens. Dr. Miguel Ángel Ruano, president of the Free Cuban Medical Association, in a recent interview with CubaNet, contradicted the official version by stating that there have indeed been deaths associated with the Oropouche virus. Ruano said that the deaths could be attributed to inadequate treatment and the lack of medicines necessary to treat the disease and its complications.
Ruano also highlighted that several arboviruses coexist in Cuba, which complicates the epidemiological panorama. He stressed that some of the deaths are being officially recorded as “acute febrile syndrome of unspecified cause” or “fever of unknown cause,” which could be hiding the true impact of the Oropouche virus on the population.
Additionally, multiple citizen reports on social media indicate a possible underreporting of cases. Many residents claim that they are not given specific diagnostic tests and that their symptoms are generically attributed to “a virus.” Likewise, there is an undetermined number of people who prefer not to go to health centers, opting for self-medication and convalescence at home due to the precarious hospital conditions and the shortage of medicines.
Although Durán acknowledged the presence of complications such as meningitis in some patients, he did not provide specific figures on the incidence of such cases.
