Tularemia

Tularemia is disease caused by infection due to bacteria called Francisella tularensis. Although the infection can occur in any part of the body on skin but it also targets the upper respiratory organs and eyes. Since the major reasons for diffusion of this disease are animals, especially rabbits and rodents, tularemia is also known by other names like rabbit fever and deerfly fever. The disease is extremely communicable and can also disseminate in humans when stung by ticks infected by the bacteria. Tularemia should be treated properly at right time because if left untreated, it may prove fatal. Another disastrous feature of tularemia is its potential to be developed as bioweapon.

Symptoms of Tularemia

The symptoms of tularemia do not appear immediately and the infected person may initially feel feverish along with shivers in the first couple of days. However, in a fortnight, the other common signs of the disease will become evident like severe pain in head and other parts of the body including joints and muscles. If the skin or mouth is infected, ulcers will appear the particular areas and the infected person will feel extremenly weak. If the eyes are targeted by tularemia then the signs are characterized by inflammation and excrescence. Similarly, when the digestive system is infected, dysentery along with vomiting frustrates the infected person. Sometimes, symptoms of pneumonia match with those of tularemia but the latter could be distinguished by additional signs like breathing problem resembling asthmatic condition, dryness in cough pain in chest.

Causes of Tularemia

The disease usually spread in humans through the animals infected by the bacteria. There are number of ways through which people can get infected but the most common could be insect bite as insects can easily carry the disease from animals to humans. People who come in contact with animals that are dead or ill may quickly get infected as the bacteria manages to find the gateway through bruise, scratch or any lesion in an individual’s body. Similarly people, especially farmers or gardeners, who frequently come in contact with soil, can get infected if the bacteria dwell in soil while inhaling. Consumption of polluted water and contaminated eatables can also cause tularemia to occur.

Diagnosis of Tularemia

Apart from common symptoms like fever and pain in different parts of the body, the doctor will examine the affected areas and ask you the mode of infection whether the symptoms of tularemia occurred after coming into direct contact with animals or insect bite, etc. The doctor will also take out the sample of your blood to make sure that the symptoms are clear indicator of tularemia. While, an X-ray of the chest will clarify that the infected person is suffering with pneumonia or not.

Tularemia Treatment

Considering the signs and symptoms and the severity tularemia, the doctor will advise the infected person to start a course of antibiotics like achromycin that should be taken orally. In certain cases, the doctor gives injections containing antibiotics to the patient either in veins or sometimes in muscles either. If the disease targets lungs, then an individual have a fair chance to catch pneumonia and may even experience severe breathing problem, hence the doctor will simultaneously treat these complications also. Similarly, the two-layered serous membrane surrounding the heart can swell and cause irritation if the disease aims it therefore the doctor will also consider this symptom while commencing the treatment. The course of medicines usually immunizes the patient from tularemia but in some cases, the disease can reappear.

Prevention of Tularemia

Since the disease transfers rapidly through insect bite, you should use protective methods to keep insects at bay like applying insect repellent creams.

Prefer wearing full-sleeved shirts and full pants along with long boots when you go to tick-infested areas.

Take a bath after returning from tick-infested areas and also wash your clothes thoroughly. This is one of the effective tularemia cure.

If you frequently come in contact with animals then make sure you wear gloves and the animals do no carry any type of infection by asking the veterinary doctor to regularly check their health.

Ensure that your surrounding area does not attract ticks.