Introduction of the Disease
“Brucellosis is a highly contagious rare bacterial disease caused my members of the Brucella genus” [1]. There is no vector that transmits this disease but it is contagious among animals and humans. “The most common way of transmission of the disease is orally. For example Elk, and bison lick a newborn, whether the youngster is alive or dead, and whether it is one of their own offspring or not. They often eat placentas, fetal sacs, and even stillborn young, which gives brucellosis a perfect way to infect other animals” [1]. Humans on the other hand get Brucellosis when in contact with the animal infected, most commonly farmers, and the rest of us by eating meat from an infected animal. “Brucella can survive up to 100 days in the environment under moist, and cool conditions. Although Brucellosis is are in the United States we still have about 100-200 cases that occur each year”[2].“The first cases identified in the U.S. resulted from exposure during the Spanish-American War, presumably from infected individuals in the Philippines. The first North American infections were probably recognized in 1894, but the results were not published until 1911” [3].
Symptoms
Brucellosis is chronic and may last for years but begins with mild flu-like symptoms such as:
• Abdominal pain
• Back pain
• Chills
• Excessive sweating
• Fatigue
• Fever
• Headache
• Joint pain
• Loss of appetite
• Weakness
• Weight loss
• Muscle Pain
• Swollen glands
“The disease is not usually fatal, but produces an intermittent fever. Symptoms usually appear between five days and a month after exposure and begin with a single bout of high fever accompanied by shivering, aching, and drenching sweats that last for a few days” [4]. Brucellosis can...
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... 2014, from http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/Brucellosis
[5] What Disease Is Easy Confusion with Brucellosis?. (2012, November 20). Keep Healthy 24.com. Retrieved April 19, 2014, from http://www.keephealthy24.com/%EF%BB%BFwhat-disease-is-easy-confusion-with-brucellosis/
[6] Minnesota Department of Health. (n.d.). Brucellosis Fact Sheet. Retrieved April 21, 2014, from http://www.health.state.mn.us/divs/idepc/diseases/brucellosis/brucellosis.html
[7] onhealth. Retrieved April 21, 2014, from http://www.onhealth.com/brucellosis/page3.htm - what_is_the_treatment_for_brucellosis
[8] UC Davis researchers discover molecular target for the bacterial infection brucellosis. (n.d.). UC Davis researchers discover molecular target for the bacterial infection brucellosis. Retrieved April 21, 2014, from http://www.ucdmc.ucdavis.edu/publish/news/newsroom/8114U
“Plague Fact Sheet.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Department of Health and Human Services. 30 March, 2005. 26 July, 2006. .
to the upper body and arms. These symptoms occur after four weeks and start by
L. pneumophila has a very wide range of effects. Healthy individuals usually go through an asymptomatic seroconversion, while less healthy people may undergo Pontiac Fever or Legionnaires’ Disease (LD). In 1968, employees at the county health department in Pontiac, Michigan came down with a fever, but the responsible pathogen was not identified at the time. It was frozen and later diagnosed as L. pneumophila. Pontiac Fever, being milder than LD, generally does not need treatment. Infected individuals will show fever, muscle aches, and headaches, and usually recover between 2-5 days. Pontiac Fever will present symptoms anywhere from a couple of hours to a couple of days after exposure, while LD takes 2-10 days to incubate. LD patients have fever, chills and a cough, with x-rays showing pneumonia. This more severe form usually prevails in elderly, cigarette smokers, people with chronic lung disease, or those who are immunocompromised, such as cancer or AIDS patients.
Fever, chills, and night sweats. Fatigue and weakness. Loss of appetite and weight loss. Shortness of breath and chest pain.
About half the population is not exposed to this virus until late adolescence. The peak incidence for girls is 14-16 and boys 16-18. After initial contact with the virus, there is an incubation period of 4-6 weeks and then the symptoms start appearing. Symptoms include fever, sore throat and lymph adenopathy (swollen and tender lymph nodes). Mono may be called glandular fever as well because of the swelling in the lymph nodes. Fevers can get as high as 102 degrees Fahrenheit and may remain high for 3-4 weeks. Other symptoms include enlargement of the spleen and liver, fatigue, loss of appetite, periorbital edema (swelling of the tissue around the eyes), petechiae (tiny bruising like spots on the roof of mouth), and a fine rash. The white blood cell and liver enzyme counts are elevated, and anemia can occur with low platelet counts.
Necrotizing Fasciitis (flesh eating bacteria ) from an essay by Katrina Tram Duong, edited by S.N. Carson M.D.
Slack, John M. and I. S. Snyder. Bacteria and Human Disease. Chicago: Year Book Medical Publishers, Inc., 1978.
A person who has been infected by the disease may experience signs of fatigue, loss of appetite, fever, sore throat, swollen lymph nodes, and a red rash that appears blotchy. Generally the signs become present between ten and twenty-one days after the person has been exposed to and infected by the virus (Silverstein et al., 1998). This is what is known as the incubation period (Plum, J., 2001). The rash is most likely to begin on the chest, back, or the scalp, but will soon spread to the rest of the body. After a couple days of having physical evidence of the infection, the rash will s...
Emerging Infectious Diseases (EIDS) are a disease of infectious origin whose incidence in humans has increased within the recent past threatens to increase in the near future. Over 30 new infectious agents have been detected worldwide in the last three decades; 60% of these are of zoonotic origin, and more than 2-3rds of these have originated in the wildlife (Dikid et al., 2013).
Centers For Disease Control (2000, July 2000). Health Statistics July 2000. Retrieved June 28, 2004, from http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/
An infected person may experience a brief period of influenza-like disability, during the starting phase, followed by a prolonged period without any syndrome. As the disability progresses, it deteriorates the immune system more and more, making it more prone to get diseases, such as tumors and opportunistic infections which may prove to be fatal to the infected person.
However, as the systemic phase of the illness begins; characterized by fever, chills, malaise and headache, the bite wound becomes swollen and indurated and is often associated with regional adenopathy. The bite site may ulcerate and pregress to a chancre-like lesion. A macular violaceous rash may occur involving extremities, face, and trunk. Joint manifestations are rare. Laboratory studies reveal a leukocytosis and up to 50% of infected have a false-positive serologic test for syphilis. Without antimicrobial therapy, the fever abates over 3-5 days only to recur at regular intervals of 3-10 days. Although relapses have been described to occur for years, spontaneous resolution usually occurs in 1 to 2 months. Without treatment mortality is around
"Chickenpox Vaccine Facts – National Vaccine Information Center." National Vaccine Information Center (NVIC). National Vaccine Information Center, n.d. Web. 16 Dec. 2013.