Aggressive infections can result if bacteria enter cuts or scrapes of swimmers.
Two
men are recovering from a potentially fatal flesh-eating bacteria that
infected their skin after they went fishing in Florida. VPC
The bacterium is in the same family as those that cause cholera.
Henry Konietzky, 59, of Palm Coast, Fla., died Sept. 23 after setting crab traps two days earlier in the river near Ormond Beach, Fla. The following day, he noticed a sore on his leg that looked like a bug bite, according to Florida TODAY.
The bacterium Vibrio vulnificus is naturally found in warm salt water, says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and people with open wounds can easily be exposed through direct contact with seawater.
The Florida Department of Health reports that the state averages 16 fatal cases from Vibrio vulnificus annually. Nationally, about 95 cases, 85 hospitalizations and 35 deaths occur each year, according to the department.
William Schaffner, an infectious-disease specialist at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, explains how this rare and often under-reported infection occurs and how it can be treated.
Q: How do people get exposed to Vibrio vulnificus?
A: The bacteria thrive in warm salty water around the Gulf Coast, often in shallow water where people fish and play. If people have scratches or cuts on their skin, usually the legs, the bacteria can find their way in and cause aggressive infections. The infections are frequently overlooked initially by patients in the early stages because it doesn't look serious. Under the skin, however, the bacteria can cause substantial tissue damage and enter the blood stream and cause sepsis (a severe blood infection).
Q: Can some people be exposed if they consume raw seafood?
A: People with liver or kidney disease, in particular, are at risk when they eat raw oysters. Oysters filter huge amounts of water, so if the bacteria are in the water, the oyster can ingest them. People whose immune systems are compromised can get overwhelmingly sick quickly. Contaminated oysters can be distributed anywhere in the country.
Q: Is this the same bacteria that affected Aimee Copeland, the Georgia graduate student who was infected last year after cutting her leg and falling into a river?
A: No. That case involved the bacteria Aeromonas hydrophila. It and Vibrio vulnificus are not in the same family of bacteria, but the manner of contracting the infection is similar.
Q: How is Vibrio vulnificus treated?
A: Both locally and systemically. That means surgery is often needed to get rid of all the involved tissue. The surgery can be very extensive with multiple procedures required to keep up with spreading infection. Amputation of an infected limb is sometimes necessary. Antibiotics are also needed to attack the infection. It's really a combined treatment. And then rigorous supportive care is needed in terms of fluids, making sure that the kidneys function, that the patient can breathe appropriately.
Q: What's to be learned from the loss of life connected with the Florida cases?
A: That there is treatment and it works best if patients, particularly those with skin infections, are seen early. Don't ignore any seemingly minor infections on your legs and arms after you've been in the water. Anything that raises your eyebrow, have it attended to right away. Of course, people with kidney and/or liver disease should not eat raw oysters or other raw shellfish.
No comments:
Post a Comment