4 key things to know about lung infections caused by fungi
purulent secretions lungs :: Article Creator
Featured Post
Non-tuberculous mycobacteria lung disease due to Mycobacterium chimaera in a 67-year-old man treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors for lung adenocarcinoma: infection due to dysregulated immunity?
What Is Strep A And What Are The Symptoms?
Health officials say parents should be aware of an infection called strep A, after children in the UK died from it.
Since Covid restrictions eased, there are more opportunities for infections like this to spread. Cases have been increasing in recent weeks.
While most people do not get extremely sick, the highly contagious bacterium that causes the infection can cause serious illness and complications.
What is strep A?
It's sometimes found in the throat or on the skin.
Many people carry it harmlessly without even knowing, but they can spread it to others who might become ill.
How do you catch strep A?
People can catch it through close contact and from coughs and sneezes.
Outbreaks can sometimes happen in places like schools and care homes.
What are the symptoms of strep A?
Most often, symptoms are mild - a sore throat or a skin infection that can be easily treated with antibiotics.
But strep A can cause a range of things - and some of them are more serious.
One is scarlet fever, which mostly affects young children and, again, needs antibiotics.
What is scarlet fever?
It is a notifiable disease, meaning health professionals must inform local health protection teams of suspected cases. This is so they can be treated quickly and possible outbreaks brought under control.
Scarlet fever causes a noticeable rash
It causes a rash and flu-like symptoms, including a temperature, sore throat and swollen neck glands.
On darker skin the rash can be more difficult to detect visually but will have a sandpapery feel.
Someone who has scarlet fever may have what doctors call a strawberry tongue - because its appearance looks a bit like a strawberry.
Is strep A dangerous?
Very rarely, strep A can also cause something called invasive group A streptococcal infection or iGAS.
Invasive disease happens when the bacteria get past your body's immune defences. This can happen when you are already ill or are on treatments, such as some cancer therapies, that affect your immune system.
Warning signs of invasive disease include:
Urgent, early medical help is essential.
The UK Health Security Agency advises: "Anyone with high fever, severe muscle aches, pain in one area of the body and unexplained vomiting or diarrhoea should call NHS 111 and seek medical help immediately."
What to do if your child is unwell
If you think your child may have any symptoms from strep A then you should speak with your doctor.
Tell them if you have been in contact with someone who has had strep A recently.
Trust your judgement if your child seems seriously unwell.
Contact NHS 111 or your local surgery if they:
Call 999 or go to an accident-and-emergency unit if:
Does strep A affect adults?
Yes. Anyone can catch it if they come into close contact with someone who is infected. Most people will not get very sick though.
Is there a vaccine for strep A?
No. Strep A is treated with antibiotics.
Is there a swab test for it?
Doctors usually diagnose and treat strep A infections based on a person's symptoms, rather than test results, but they may take a throat swab. In the UK, rapid turnaround swab tests are not used by the NHS. Prof Kamila Hawthorne, chair of the Royal College of GPs, told the BBC: "We are not advising using those at the moment. It's very much a clinical diagnosis."
For example, someone who tests positive for strep throat but has no symptoms may not need antibiotics. They are less likely to spread it to others than someone with symptoms, and they very unlikely to get complications.
How long does strep A last?
People with strep throat should stay home from work, school, or nursery until they no longer have a fever and have taken antibiotics for at least 24 hours. This will help stop the infection spreading to other people.
What is the UK doing about it?
Investigations are under way following reports of an increase in infections in children over the past few weeks, particularly with some causing severe illness.
Currently, there is no evidence that a new strain is circulating. The increase is most likely related to high amounts of circulating bacteria.
Have you and your family been affected by strep A? Share your experiences by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.Co.Uk.
Please include a contact number if you are willing to speak to a BBC journalist. You can also get in touch in the following ways:
If you are reading this page and can't see the form you will need to visit the mobile version of the BBC website to submit your question or comment or you can email us at HaveYourSay@bbc.Co.Uk. Please include your name, age and location with any submission.
London child dies with Strep A bacterial disease
Primary school pupil dies after catching disease
Tips For Parents Surrounding Strep Throat
BURLINGTON, VT — Parents have been asking me some painful questions about strep throats and why we need to treat them with antibiotics.
Well, I don't want this condition to be sorely missed by anyone so I shall share some important information.
Strep throat, though unusual to see in children less than two years of age, is one of the most common childhood illnesses.
When recognized and treated early, strep throat rarely causes a problem.
However, when missed, strep throat can cause a type of life-threatening shock, result in kidney disease, or progress to something several weeks after the sore throat that we call rheumatic fever. This is a serious form of heart disease that can also affect the joints, skin, and even neurologic system. Preventing these complications is why we treat all cases of strep throat with antibiotics.
When does a sore throat need medical attention?
A sore throat caused by a virus usually occurs in association with other viral symptoms like a runny nose, cough, hoarseness, red or runny eyes and/or diarrhea.
Strep throat, on the other hand, usually may just involve the throat which will look red with white patches in the back, swollen glands on the sides of the neck and enlarged tonsils also covered with white patches. There may also be fever, headache, rash and/or belly pain.
If you have any suspicion that your child's sore throat might be due to the strep bacteria, please have their throat tested for strep. If the test is positive, begin treatment with an antibiotic, usually a type of penicillin.
Your child with strep is contagious until after 24 hours of antibiotic treatment and no fever for at least 12 hours. Please keep this in mind when it comes to deciding whether to take your child to their health care professional or send them back to school.
A full course of antibiotics is still required for ten days even if your child is no longer contagious with strep to ensure its eradication.
Can strep throat be prevented?
There is no vaccine for strep throat. And even if you have it once, you can get it again.
You can reduce the chances of your child being infected by having children not share their food, drinks or towels with other family or friends, and to sneeze or cough into their elbow and not their hands.
Handwashing, of course, is a great way to minimize the spread of this bacteria.
Hopefully, tips like these will be easy ones to swallow when it comes to knowing the importance of recognizing and then treating strep throat.
Lewis First, MD, is Chief of Pediatrics at The University of Vermont
Children's Hospital and Chair of the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Vermont's Larner College of Medicine. Catch "First with Kids" weekly on WOKO 98.9FM and NBC5.
What's It Really Like To Have Psoriasis?
There's some tenderness to it. There are days where it's just painful. And your skin's cracking, it's bleeding.GILLIAN RIBNER
Sometimes the bad days outnumber the good days. And bad days can be really bad, to the point where he's in tears. The pain is so bad he's in tears.AARON RIBNER
It can be very demoralizing to look in the mirror and see this condition chewing away at your body.ROBERT SWERLICK
The condition that Aaron Ribner battles is psoriasis, a non-contagious skin disorder that currently has no cure and afflicts between 2% and 3% of the world's population. For those unaffected, it may seem odd that a skin disorder would be so overwhelming.AARON RIBNER
You make accommodations. But it becomes difficult and challenging. You might wear your beard longer. You might grow your hair longer. I've certainly done both of those things to cover up areas of my body where I've got psoriasis.DAMON MEHARG
Outbreaks can sometimes be triggered by emotional stress, injury to the skin, or by infections, such as strep. Because it can masquerade as other skin conditions, especially in its early stages, diagnosis can be difficult. Aaron was told he had a bad case of dermatitis by two different specialists before he was eventually seen by Emery's Dr. Robert Swerlick.ROBERT SWERLICK
When I saw him, he actually had evidence of an active strep infection. We treated that and also put him on a biologic agent. He did dramatically better. And in fact, he came off all therapy for a while.DAMON MEHARG
Though much is still unknown about psoriasis, experts believe it could be an inherited autoimmune disorder, where skin cell production is accelerated and lesions form, ravaging the skin. Treatments include phototherapy, steroids, topicals, and newer biologic agents which suppress the immune response.ROBERT SWERLICK
It's hard to imagine how I actually practiced with some of the older things were you'd smear people with tar and smelly things and goop them up, where now medications that we have at our disposal can really put people into virtually complete remission.DAMON MEHARG
Treatments can be expensive and sometimes difficult to acquire. Such was the case with Aaron when his next outbreak occurred. As his symptoms got worse, the disease took its toll on his family.AARON RIBNER
They know that Daddy hurts. They know that those areas of his body are very tender and very sore. So they become much more ginger about coming up and having physical contact.GILLIAN RIBNER
Why is that, Mommy? What's going on? Is Daddy going to die? You get those questions.DAMON MEHARG
Not to mention the modifications to his behavior he had to make to keep from putting off friends and business associates.AARON RIBNER
I used to shake hands pretty much straight on. And now you shake hands kind of like more of a hip hop style. You come in from the top.GILLIAN RIBNER
He is still trying to figure out how to talk to people, how to hide it.AARON RIBNER
If you use the word 'genetic disorder,' people are more comfortable with it than a viral infection or something like that they might catch. And that's always really at the core of what people are afraid of-- oh, can I get that?DAMON MEHARG
For WebMD, I'm Damon Meharg.","publisher":"WebMD Video"} ]]>
Hide Video Transcript
AARON RIBNER
There's some tenderness to it. There are days where it's just painful. And your skin's cracking, it's bleeding.GILLIAN RIBNER
Sometimes the bad days outnumber the good days. And bad days can be really bad, to the point where he's in tears. The pain is so bad he's in tears.AARON RIBNER
It can be very demoralizing to look in the mirror and see this condition chewing away at your body.ROBERT SWERLICK
The condition that Aaron Ribner battles is psoriasis, a non-contagious skin disorder that currently has no cure and afflicts between 2% and 3% of the world's population. For those unaffected, it may seem odd that a skin disorder would be so overwhelming.AARON RIBNER
You make accommodations. But it becomes difficult and challenging. You might wear your beard longer. You might grow your hair longer. I've certainly done both of those things to cover up areas of my body where I've got psoriasis.DAMON MEHARG
Outbreaks can sometimes be triggered by emotional stress, injury to the skin, or by infections, such as strep. Because it can masquerade as other skin conditions, especially in its early stages, diagnosis can be difficult. Aaron was told he had a bad case of dermatitis by two different specialists before he was eventually seen by Emery's Dr. Robert Swerlick.ROBERT SWERLICK
When I saw him, he actually had evidence of an active strep infection. We treated that and also put him on a biologic agent. He did dramatically better. And in fact, he came off all therapy for a while.DAMON MEHARG
Though much is still unknown about psoriasis, experts believe it could be an inherited autoimmune disorder, where skin cell production is accelerated and lesions form, ravaging the skin. Treatments include phototherapy, steroids, topicals, and newer biologic agents which suppress the immune response.ROBERT SWERLICK
It's hard to imagine how I actually practiced with some of the older things were you'd smear people with tar and smelly things and goop them up, where now medications that we have at our disposal can really put people into virtually complete remission.DAMON MEHARG
Treatments can be expensive and sometimes difficult to acquire. Such was the case with Aaron when his next outbreak occurred. As his symptoms got worse, the disease took its toll on his family.AARON RIBNER
They know that Daddy hurts. They know that those areas of his body are very tender and very sore. So they become much more ginger about coming up and having physical contact.GILLIAN RIBNER
Why is that, Mommy? What's going on? Is Daddy going to die? You get those questions.DAMON MEHARG
Not to mention the modifications to his behavior he had to make to keep from putting off friends and business associates.AARON RIBNER
I used to shake hands pretty much straight on. And now you shake hands kind of like more of a hip hop style. You come in from the top.GILLIAN RIBNER
He is still trying to figure out how to talk to people, how to hide it.AARON RIBNER
If you use the word "genetic disorder," people are more comfortable with it than a viral infection or something like that they might catch. And that's always really at the core of what people are afraid of-- oh, can I get that?DAMON MEHARG
For WebMD, I'm Damon Meharg.Popular Posts
Preventing, controlling spread of animal diseases focus of forum at Penn State - Pennsylvania State University
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — An outbreak of the highly pathogenic avian influenza virus in poultry in 2014-15 resulted in the destruction of more than 50 million chickens and turkeys in the U.S., causing billions of dollars in economic loss. This animal disease outbreak — the worst in U.S. history — is one example of how devastating a foreign animal disease can be to animal agriculture and the country's economy. The resurgence of avian influenza in multiple states, including Pennsylvania, is once again bringing the importance of preventing animal diseases to the forefront, noted Suresh Kuchipudi, clinical professor of microbiology in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences. Exploring the emergence, spread and control of animal infectious diseases such as avian influenza was the focus of the inaugural Emerging Animal Infectious Disease Conference held Nov. 29-Dec.1, 2021, at Penn State. It was hosted by the College of Agricultural Sciences, the Pennsylvania Department of A...
Model Monday's: Diana Moldovan
dented can botulism :: Article Creator Three Canadians Sickened In France's Botulism Outbreak Are From Quebec: PHAC The Public Health Agency of Canada has confirmed that the three Canadians who fell ill in a botulism outbreak in France are from Quebec. They're among at least 12 people who have suspected botulism after eating sardines prepared and served at Tchin Tchin Wine Bar in Bordeaux, France. The food was eaten between Sept. 4 and Sept. 10. The Associated Press has reported that some patients have been released from hospital, but most of them are in intensive care or critical condition. Canada's public health agency says it cannot divulge the condition of the patients from Quebec because it is considered private health information. Other tourists from the U.S., Ireland, Germany and Spain were among those sickened. One patient, who was not from Canada, has died. France's public health agency is leading the investigation...
“Live Coronavirus Map Used to Spread Malware - Krebs on Security” plus 1 more
“Live Coronavirus Map Used to Spread Malware - Krebs on Security” plus 1 more Live Coronavirus Map Used to Spread Malware - Krebs on Security Posted: 12 Mar 2020 05:12 PM PDT Cybercriminals constantly latch on to news items that captivate the public's attention, but usually they do so by sensationalizing the topic or spreading misinformation about it. Recently, however, cybercrooks have started disseminating real-time, accurate information about global infection rates tied to the Coronavirus/COVID-19 pandemic in a bid to infect computers with malicious software. A recent snapshot of the Johns Hopkins Coronavirus data map, available at coronavirus.jhu.edu. In one scheme, an interactive dashboard of Coronavirus infections and deaths produced by Johns Hopkins University is being used in malicious Web sites (and possibly spam emails) to spread password-stealing malware. Late last month, a member of several Russian language ...
Comments
Post a Comment