health

Cat scratch disease A cat carrying Bartonella henselae (bar-tuh-
NEH-luh HEN-suh-lay), the bacterium responsible for cat scratch disease,
usually does not have symptoms, but if the bacteria are passed to a
human through a scratch or bite, the person may experience skin sores,
swollen and sore lymph nodes, extreme tiredness, headaches, and fever.
Doctors may prescribe antibiotics to treat the infection.

Psittacosis People who have contact with birds may be at risk for psittacosis
(sih-tuh-KO-sis), also known as parrot fever. If a person inhales
bird feces or urine particles while cleaning a bird’s cage, the person may
develop symptoms of pneumonia (nu-MO-nyah, inflammation of the
lung), such as fever, coughing, or chest pain. Medical professionals use
antibiotics to treat psittacosis.

Rabies A virus that is carried in the saliva of infected animals can cause
rabies when transmitted through a bite or, less commonly, through contact
with saliva. Rabies in the United States is most often associated with raccoons,
followed by bats and skunks, but any bite produced by an animal, whether
domestic, stray, or wild, should be reported immediately to a local animal
control agency. Symptoms include fever, difficulty swallowing, delirium,
seizures, and coma. If treatment does not begin very soon after the bite,
death can result. Treatment includes intensive care in a hospital. A series of
vaccinations started at the time of a bite from a possibly infected animal
can prevent the person from developing the disease.
In 2006, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
reported that tests of more than 113,000 animals in 49 states, the
District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico resulted in 6,940 cases of rabies
in animals and three human cases. Only one state, Hawaii, was free of
rabies. Rabies is much more common in many other countries, especially
developing ones.

Plague Plague (PLAYG) is a bacterial infection caused by Yersinia pestis
(yer-SIN-e-uh PES-tis). People can contract plague through the bite of a
flea that has become infected through contact with an infected rodent,
such as a rat. The disease causes such symptoms as fever and swollen
lymph nodes. In some cases the infection spreads through the blood and
can infect the lungs. If this happens, plague can spread from person to
person through coughing or sneezing. Plague was the cause of epidemics
in Europe and Asia during the Middle Ages, and it is still seen in the
21st century in many developing countries. It occurs in many developed
countries too, including the United States, although not as many cases
occur. The disease can be fatal if it is not treated with antibiotics.

Hantavirus Rodents, such as mice and rats, may carry hantavirus
(HAN-tuh-vy-rus), which can spread to humans when they inhale
particles from rodent feces, saliva, or urine. People infected with hantavirus
can develop hantavirus pulmonary (PUL-mo-nar-ee) syndrome (HPS),
which causes such symptoms as fever, headaches, muscle aches, nausea
(NAW-zee-uh), vomiting, diarrhea (dye-uh-REE-uh), abdominal pain,
and chills. In severe cases a person may experience shortness of breath and
the lungs may fill with fluid. No cure is available for hantavirus infection,
but people who have HPS typically are hospitalized in an intensive care
unit, where they receive oxygen and other types of supportive care.

Lyme disease Borrelia burgdorferi (buh-REEL-e-uh burg-DOR-feree)
bacteria inside an infected tick can cause Lyme (LIME) disease in
humans after a tick attaches to the skin and feeds on a person’s blood.
Ticks pick up the bacterium by feeding on the blood of infected deer
and mice, which serve as reservoirs for the organism. Lyme disease can
produce a number of symptoms, such as extreme tiredness, muscle aches,
and swollen painful joints. Patients often describe the symptoms as being
flu-like and pay a visit to the doctor’s office because no one else they know
has the flu. At the site of the tick bite, some (but not all) people develop
a bull’s-eye rash, a red rash surrounded by rings that resembles a bull’s-eye
target. A person with Lyme disease usually is treated with antibiotics.

Toxoplasmosis Eating contaminated meat or having contact with
the feces of an infected cat can put a person at risk for toxoplasmosis
(tox-o-plaz-MO-sis). This zoonosis is caused by a parasite and can produce
such symptoms as swollen lymph nodes, muscle aches, headaches,
and sore throat in a healthy person, and life-threatening brain infections in
people with weakened immune systems, especially those who have HIV/
AIDS*. If a pregnant woman becomes infected with the parasite, she can
transmit the infection to her unborn baby, which can lead to a number of
health problems in the child. Doctors treat those people who have severe
forms of the disease, as well as pregnant women, with antibiotics.

Trichinosis If people eat meat (especially pork products, such as sausage
or ham, or the meat of wild carnivorous animals) infected with the
eggs of Trichinella (trih-kih-NEH-luh) worms, the people can contract
trichinosis (trih-kih-NO-sis), also known as trichinellosis. Trichinosis is a
disease that produces such symptoms as diarrhea, vomiting, and abdominal
pain. It can cause nerve and muscle damage and heart and lung problems.
Medication treats this condition.