Philippines: ‘Suspected’ typhoid outbreak send dozens to the hospital in Albay
At least 66 villagers, children and adults, have been stricken with suspected typhoid fever in 18 villages in the town of Oas in Albay, according to local health authorities.
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They were diagnosed and hospitalized suffering with high fever for more than five days, dehydration and loose bowel (LBM), constipation, moderate to severe headache and weakness.
According to Dr. Nats Rempillo, Albay’s assistant provincial health officer, in his report to the Department of Health (DOH) in Bicol, their initial findings revealed that the patients fell ill after drinking contaminated water sourced from the town’s water reservoir.
Health authorities have implemented strict use of chlorination in water for household use.
Although not officially declared an outbreak, health officials are implementing policies to get the situation under control.
Typhoid fever is a potentially life-threatening illness caused by the bacterium Salmonella typhi. Salmonella typhi lives only in humans. Persons with typhoid fever carry the bacteria in their bloodstream and intestinal tract. In addition, a small number of persons, called carriers, recover from typhoid fever but continue to carry the bacteria. Both ill persons and carriers shed S.typhi in their feces.
You can get typhoid fever if you eat food or drink beverages that have been handled by a person who is shedding S. typhi or if sewage contaminated with S. typhi bacteria gets into the water you use for drinking or washing food. Therefore, typhoid fever is more common in areas of the world where handwashing is less frequent and water is likely to be contaminated with sewage.
Typhoid fever can be successfully treated with appropriate antibiotics, and persons given antibiotics usually begin to feel better within 2 to 3 days.
Learn more about typhoid fever in this educational video
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[…] Philippines: 'Suspected' typhoid outbreak send dozens to the hospital in Albay Typhoid fever is a potentially life-threatening illness caused by the bacterium Salmonella typhi. Salmonella typhi lives only in humans. Persons with typhoid fever carry the bacteria in their bloodstream and intestinal tract. In addition, a small … Read more on The Global Dispatch […]