[ad_1]
A 48-year-old man from Wisconsin recently contracted a rare blood infection that led to the amputation of his legs and parts of his arms, according to reports. And the most likely source of the devastating infection was his own dog.
Greg Manteufel went to the hospital with what he believed to be the flu, reported yesterday July 30th. But in the space of a week, the doctors had to amputate both his legs and, later, parts of his hands and forearms. Amputations were necessary after the infection caused a drastic drop in Manteufel's blood pressure, severely reducing blood flow in his limbs and causing tissue death.
Blood tests revealed that Manteufel infection was caused by a bacterium Capnocytophaga according to Fox 6 Now. [11 Ways Your Beloved Pet May Make You Sick]
These bacteria are found in the mouths of cats and dogs, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Up to 74 percent of dogs and 57 percent of cats have Capnocytophaga but bacteria do not cause disease in dogs and cats, says the CDC.
In humans, however, it is another story. In very rare cases, bacteria can spread to humans through bites, scratches or close contact with cats and dogs. The people most at risk for this infection are those whose immune systems are weakened, according to the CDC. (It is not known whether Manteufel had a weakened immune system.)
If a person is infected with Capnocytophaga bacteria can spread into the bloodstream and cause infections in various parts of the body, including including a blood infection known as sepsis. Sepsis occurs when the immune system reacts mbadively to infection, triggering inflammation at the body level and, potentially, organ failure.
Most people who contract the bacteria begin to show symptoms within three to five days of infection. can occur from one to 14 days after infection, according to the CDC. Symptoms include blisters, redness, swelling, pus or pain around the bite of an animal, fever, diarrhea, headache, vomiting and muscle aches or articular. gangrene, or tissue death, and require amputations to save the rest of the body
. Silvia Munoz-Price, a specialist in infectious diseases at Froedtert and the Medical College of Wisconsin, told Fox 6 that the case is extremely rare. "More than 99% of people who have dogs will never have this problem, it's just a coincidence," she said.
Originally published on Live Science
[ad_2]
Source link
