ENVIRONMENTAL- Infectious and Communicable Disease

Tetanus

also known as lockjaw

Tetanus

Acute, life-threatening infectious disease: persistent, painful contractions of the skeletal muscles

• acquired from the environment and not transmitted from person to person

• caused by a bacteria found in the soil. The bacillus become dangerous when it enters the body

toxin attacks the nervous system (muscle spasms)

Tetanus

• Common causes: puncture wounds, burns, surgical incisions, and skin ulcers, dental infections

• symptoms: stiffness of jaw, throat muscles and some neck muscles, high fever, profuse sweating, high heart rate, dysphagia, pain

True

(True or False) Get tetanus shot every 10 years

Lyme disease

transmitted by a tick through bacteria

• carried by backlogged ticks found on white-tail deer, white-footed mouse, raccoons, rabbits, dogs, horses, cattle and migrating birds

• tick injects its saliva into the person’s bloodstream or deposits its fecal matter on the skin

Stage 1: Lyme disease

rash and flu-like symptoms

• occurs in 60-90% of cases (dark-red rim)

Stage 2: Lyme disease

nervous system issues (paralysis, meningitis)

Stage 3: Lyme disease

chronic arthritis and neurological problems

Primary prevention of Lyme disease

• wear DEET when outside, bright clothing (preferably white), cover body as much as possible

• truck pants into high socks, wear a hat

West Nile Virus

Leading cause of mosquito-borne disease in the United States

• can affect the CNS

• occurs when the virus from infected mosquito bite multiplies in a person’s blood, crossing the blood-brain and causing swelling of the brain

• can also spread through blood transfusion and organ transplantation

  • no treatment

Primary Prevention of West Nile Virus

• wear DEET outside (pregnant women and infants cannot use)

• wear loose-fitting clothing, preferably white

• avoid outside between dusk and dawn

• empty standing water

Malaria

parasitic disease that is transmitted from infected female Anopheles mosquitoes who bite humans

• parasite infects: Liver then RBC (burst cells)

• can be transmitted from mother to her unborn child

• not endemic in the U.S. ( most cases out of the country)

• people do not spread malaria to other people

Primary Prevention of Malaria

• take medication to prevent malaria

• see PCP six week before travel out of country

• check if malaria is in the region or country between travel

Hantavirus

disease spread through contact with rodents, such as deer mice, cotton rats, rice rats, white-footed mouse (urine, droppings, saliva)

• pets can spread virus to humans if they bring infected rodents in home

• No person-to-person transmission; this virus that has been in the news recently is a rare strain not usually seen before

How Hantavirus is spread

• transmission from rodent to humans

• inhaling, eating food, touching, being bitten or scratched

Bubonic Plague (Black Death)

caused by bite of infected flea or exposure to infected material through a break in the skin

• caused by bacterium in the fleas of rodents such as rats

• many animals carry and spread the disease

  • rodents, pet dogs, cats, deer, camels

Bubonic Plague

most common and survivable form of the plague

• when Y. pests enters your body, it hides from your immune system, allowing it to multiply and spread out

  • releases toxin to kill the cell

Septicemic Plague

can develop independently or as a complication from bubonic and pneumonic plague when bacteria enter the bloodstream

• can cause gangrene, which destroys your tissues

  • fingers, hands, toes, feet, or other body parts turn black

• without appropriate treatment —> fatal w/ mortality of 100%

Pneumonic Plague

severe and potentially fatal, lung disease caused by bacterium spread through the inhalation of infected droplets from the cough or a sneeze of an infected human or animal that has the bubonic or septicemic plague

• can also spread through contact with the infected tissues of an infected animal

• deadliest form of plague. Left untreated, it can kill you in 18 to 24hrs.

True

(True or False) Cats are vulnerable to plague and can be infected by eating sick rodents. These cats can pass droplets infected with plague to their owners

Primary Prevention of Plague

• avoid contact with wild animals, never feed/handle wild rodents, do not touch sick or dead animals, avoid fleas, use vet-approved flea treatment on pets

• can be used as bioterrorism attack if sprayed into the air