Leptospirosis (Weil’s disease)
- An infectious disease that affects humans and animals, is considered the most common zoonosis in the world
Causative Agent:
Leptospira interrogans
Sign/Symptoms:
- High fever
- Chills
- Vomiting
- Red eyes
- Diarrhea
- Severe headache
- muscle aches
- may include jaundice (yellow skin and eyes)
- abdominal pain
Treatment:
PET – > Penicillins, Erythromycin, Tetracycline
Malaria
- Malaria (from Medieval Italian: mala aria – “bad air”; formerly called ague or marsh fever) is an infectious disease that is widespread in many tropical and subtropical regions.
Causative Agent:
Anopheles female mosquito
Signs & Symptoms:
- Chills to convulsion
- Hepatomegaly
- Anemia
- Sweats profusely
- Elevated temperature
Treatment:
- Chemoprophylaxis – chloroquine taken at weekly interval, starting from 1-2 weeks before entering the endemic area.
- Anti-malarial drugs – sulfadoxine, quinine sulfate, tetracycline, quinidine
- Insecticide treatment of mosquito nets, house spraying, stream seeding and clearing, sustainable preventive and vector control meas
Preventive Measures: (CLEAN)
- Chemically treated mosquito nets
- Larvae eating fish
- Environmental clean up
- Anti mosquito soap/lotion
- Neem trees/eucalyptus tree
Filariasis
- name for a group of tropical diseases caused by various thread-like parasitic round worms (nematodes) and their larvae
- larvae transmit the disease to humans through a mosquito bite
- can progress to include gross enlargement of the limbs and genitalia in a condition called elephantiasis
Sign/Symptoms:
Asymptomatic Stage
- Characterized by the presence of microfilariae in the peripheral blood
- No clinical signs and symptoms of the disease
- Some remain asymptomatic for years and in some instances for life
Acute Stage
- Lymphadenitis (inflammation of lymph nodes)
- Lymphangitis (inflammation of lymph vessels)
- In some cases the male genitalia is affected leading to orchitis (redness, painful and tender scrotum)
Chronic Stage
- Hydrocoele (swelling of the scrotum)
- Lyphedema (temporary swelling of the upper and lower extremities
- Elephantiasis (enlargement and thickening of the skin of the lower and / or upper extremities, scrotum, breast)
Management:
- Diethylcarbamazine citrate or Hetrazan
- Ivermectin,
- Albendazolethe
- No treatment can reverse elephantiasis
Schistosomiasis
- parasitic disease caused by a larvae
Causative Agent:
Schistosoma intercalatum, Schistosoma japonicum, Schistosoma mansoni
Signs & Symptoms: (BALLIPS)
- Bulging abdomen
- Abdominal pain
- Loose bowel movement
- Low grade fever
- Inflammation of liver & spleen
- Pallor
- Seizure
Preventive measures
- health education regarding mode of transmission and methods of protection; proper disposal of feces and urine; improvement of irrigation and agriculture practices
- Control of patient, contacts and the immediate environment
Treatment:
- Diethylcarbamazepine citrate (DEC) or Praziquantel (drug of choice)
Dengue
- DENGUE is a mosquito-borne infection which in recent years has become a major international public health concern..
- It is found in tropical and sub-tropical regions around the world, predominantly in urban and semi-urban areas.
Sign/Symptoms: (VLINOSPARD)
- Vomiting
- Low platelet
- Nausea
- Onset of fever
- Severe headache
- Pain of the muscle and joint
- Abdominal pain
- Rashes
- Diarrhea
Treatment:
- The mainstay of treatment is supportive therapy.
- Intravenous fluids
- A platelet transfusion
Reference:
Ms Ma. Adelaida Morong, Far Eastern University- Institute of Nursing
In-House Nursing Review