Nowadays, health is a privilege and a gift, and maintaining it is everyone’s priority. Knowing the specifics of the diseases is the first step toward staying fit and healthy.
Every day presents us with a new problem in the form of a new sickness that has infected our life on a mental, physical, and emotional level. Scrub Typhus is an example of a disease that has made its way into our lives.
What is Scrub Typhus?
Scrub typhus, like dengue fever, is a vector-borne disease, however, scrub typhus is caused by bacteria rather than a virus.
Scrub typhus, also known as Bush Typhus, is a disease caused by the Orientia tsutsugamushi bacteria. It is transmitted to humans by the bites of infected chiggers (larval mites).
In Mathura, Uttar Pradesh, several cases of a mysterious fever have been reported, mainly in Koh village. There had also been a few deaths reported.
Scrub typhus has been reported in several places of India, including epidemics in the sub-Himalayan zone from Jammu to Nagaland, according to the National Health Portal (NHP). In Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim, and Darjeeling, outbreaks were reported in 2003-04 and 2007.
Symptoms:
- Fever
- Headache
- Body aches
- Rash.
- A dark, scab-like region at the site of the chigger bite.
Note:
- Confusion, unconsciousness, or swollen lymph nodes are some of the mental abnormalities that might occur.
- Organ failure and bleeding are common in people with serious illnesses, and if left untreated, they can be fatal.
Prevention:
Scrub typhus has no vaccination available to prevent it. So, use Insect repellents and wear clothes that cover your legs and hands.
Here are some suggestions:
- Avoid touch with infected chiggers to lower your risk of acquiring scrub typhus.
- Avoid regions with a lot of vegetation and shrubbery where chiggers may be found when travelling to locations where scrub typhus is common.
Treatment:
Antibiotics are most effective when used as soon as symptoms appear. The antibiotic doxycycline should be used to treat scrub typhus. Doxycycline is safe to use in people of all ages. Early doxycycline treatment usually results in a speedy recovery.
Kindly take all the precautions to keep yourself Fit and Healthy!
