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DTLA – DLos Angeles owntown is in the middle of something that few people expected: an outbreak of typhus caused by fleas. This should not panic the frenzy of the 2014 Ebola crisis, but it is serious, and it would be wise for locals and local workers to take basic precautions. Few people die of typhus (in fact, many confuse it with typhoid fever, transmitted by contaminated food and water), but they can become seriously ill. There may be stays in the hospital and organ damage.
[Get DTLA stories in our daily email newsletter.]The epidemic has attracted a lot of attention. It is serious enough that the County Public Health Department has designated a 279-acre portion of the downtown core as a "typhus zone".
The area is bounded by Spring, Alameda, third and seventh streets. It includes Skid Row, and public health officials report that six of the nine cases identified in downtown over a three-month period involve people who are homeless. The area of concern extends however more widely: the Old Bank district and the eastern side of the historic core are in the area, as is the southern tip of Little Tokyo and many blocks filled with ancient warehouses.
There could be more cases. Symptoms usually do not manifest one to two weeks after exposure. In addition, typhus is difficult to detect and can be misdiagnosed as another disease. Declaring the epidemic is partly about getting doctors to know how to look for and look for the disease.
Government officials seem to take the matter seriously and we expect them to react aggressively. Mayor Eric Garcetti said he was spending an additional $ 300,000 cleaning the area and garbage would be picked up more frequently. That's fine, but government officials need to work closely with business leaders and business leaders who are familiar with the situation on the streets, because in some parts of the city center, mountains of garbage often occupy days or more.
Typhus is transmitted to people by fleas on animals such as cats, dogs, opossums and rodents; it can not be transmitted from person to person. Although it can be treated effectively with antibiotic therapy, prevention is the first step. Pet owners are advised to apply flea medications to animals that are going outside. The Department of Public Health recommends residents and workers in the area to use insect repellent and avoid petting or feeding strays.
The problem extends beyond the disease because a typhus epidemic is a public relations disaster for the city center. This is the kind of thing that is caused by piles of unwanted waste in too many neighborhoods in the community, which makes some residents wonder if they want to live here in the long run. People beyond the city center can go somewhere else for their evenings or weekends after hearing about the outbreak, even though most of downtown is not in the area.
The government and health officials must take the problem head on and convince the public that everything is being done to solve it. Pick up the garbage. Clean the sidewalks. Continue on the long term to avoid further outbreaks. Nobody wants to spend time in the "typhus zone".
© Los Angeles Downtown News 2018
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