United States: Health authorities are issuing warnings to the people living along the Gulf Coast regions following the death of eight victims of the flesh-eating bacteria commonly known as Vibrio vulnificus.
This is according to the Louisiana Department of Health, which, as of Thursday, July 31, had confirmed 17 instances of the flesh-eating bacteria in 2014, all of which led to hospitalization.
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Additionally, there were four deaths as a result. Approximately 75 percent of those cases were caused by wound infection through seawater. Also, it can be noted that there were 13 cases and four deaths of Vibrio confirmed by the Florida Department of Health this year.
One has also been reported in Mississippi and Alabama, but it is not fatal. To be protective during the summer, health officials are promoting learning among residents.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), approximately 80,000 cases of illness in the United States per year are caused by Vibrio, as people.com reported.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention tells us that Vibrio naturally occurs in coastal waters. Vibrio sickens most of the people who consume raw or undercooked shellfish, mainly oysters, since the bacteria will accumulate within the shellfish, according to the CDC.
However, they also occur in brackish water, and when a swimmer has an open wound or a recent tattoo or piercing, this leads to an infection. Infections that happen more commonly are between May and October, as the waters are warmer.
The symptoms of a Vibrio infection differ, based on the mode of contraction of this bacterium.
As per the CDC guidelines, for bloodstream infections, someone may experience “fever, chills, dangerously low blood pressure, and blistering skin lesions.”
Nevertheless, in the case of a wound infection, a fever will occur along with swelling and discharge around the wound, as people.com reported.
Additionally, CDC says a Vibrio infection is treatable with antibiotics, but in more extreme cases, “doctors may need to amputate a patient’s legs or arms to remove dead or infected tissue.”
CDC says that 1 out of every five people dies from the attack of the flesh-eating bacteria, claiming that some people lose their lives within one to two days after developing the infection.