Introduction. The entry of American/Asian DENV-2 lineage II in the Loreto region of the Peruvian Amazon coincided with a sudden increase in dengue cases requiring hospitalization. However, official statistics reported few severe cases. It is postulated that there was an underreporting of severe cases in the official reports of the Ministry of Health. Objectives. To determine the frequency of patients with signs of severity among patients hospitalized for probable dengue fever during the 2011 outbreak at the Iquitos Hospital, Peru. Methods. A longitudinal study was carried out applying a daily checklist on the presence of signs of severity during hospital stay to a group of patients hospitalized in the dengue unit of the Iquitos hospital. Results. Of 178 patients evaluated, 66 (37%, CI: 29.9- 44.6%) presented some sign of severity, mostly due to shock (75,7%). This result contrasts with t...

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The Amazon is home to important wildlife and a biodiversity hotspot of global importance. The ancestral knowledge kept by Indigenous communities about its fauna and flora contributes further to its irreplaceable value. The Peruvian Amazon was heavily struck by the COVID-19 epidemic with a cumulative incidence of 725, a mortality rate of 34 per 100,000 inhabitants, and a case fatality rate of 4.6% by the end of July 2020. In this work, we review scientific literature and media to trace the events that happened at the beginning of the COVID-19 epidemic in the Peruvian Amazon. Results are synthesized in three observations: (1) the evolution of the COVID-19 epidemic within the Peruvian Amazon and the response of the Peruvian health care system, (2) Confusing information about Ivermectin use for COVID-19 treatment and prevalent self-medication (3) The response of the traditional Indigenous he...