The twenty-first century is the time of new technologies and discoveries, including in the field of medicine. If earlier epidemics of diseases that mowed down entire families and localities instilled fear and horror in people, today medical scientists have already found ways to deal with many previously incurable ailments. For example, the cholera epidemic in Russia in the nineteenth century claimed the lives of more than two million people. However, today the mortality rate from this disease is only 5-10%.
The biggest epidemics in human history
An epidemic is a massive spread of a disease or infection. In the entire history of mankind, you can count a couple of dozen of the most terrible and dangerous epidemics.
- Smallpox epidemic. In 1500 she reduced the population of the American continent from 100 million to 10! Symptoms of the disease are fever, aches in the body and joints, a rash that resembles abscesses. The method of transmission of infection is airborne, contact-household. Mortality - 30%.
- Influenza epidemic. The largest was in 1918. The disease has killed about a hundred million people. Influenza is one of the worst pandemics to date.
- Plague, or "Black Death". In 1348, this disease claimed the lives of half of the Europeans, and also struck China and India. The plague is carried by rats, or rather, rat fleas. Sometimes the disease flares up in our time, in areas inhabited by small rodents. Symptoms of the disease - fever, cough, hemoptysis, heavy breathing. Modern methods of medicine today make it possible to effectively fight the plague.
- Malaria epidemic. A common occurrence in African countries. The carrier is the malarial mosquito. The mortality of the disease today remains quite high.
- Tuberculosis. Sometimes referred to as the "white plague". The main reason for the spread is unfavorable living and working conditions, poverty. In the early stages, the disease is curable.
- Cholera. This is complete dehydration of the body, which often leads to death. Six cholera pandemics have killed millions of people on different continents. Symptoms of the disease are vomiting, diarrhea, convulsions. The infection spreads mainly through food and water.
- AIDS. The most terrible of epidemics. The disease is incurable. The only salvation is maintenance therapy throughout life. Drug addicts are at risk.
- Yellow fever. The mode of transmission is similar to malaria. Symptoms - chills, headaches, vomiting, muscle pain. The disease mainly affects the kidneys and liver. As a result, human skin becomes yellowishshade.
- Typhus epidemic. Symptoms - fever, lack of appetite, malaise and weakness, headache, fever, chills, nausea. Infection can cause the development of gangrene, inflammation of the lungs. The typhoid epidemic largely influenced the course of the First and Second World Wars.
- Ebola. Deadly virus. Lethal outcome occurs in 90% of cases. The virus is transmitted through the blood, sputum of the patient and through semen. Symptoms are severe headache, fever, nausea, chest pain, rash, diarrhea, dehydration, bleeding from all organs.
The main reason for the global spread of infections is the lack of sanitary standards, non-observance of personal hygiene, the development of new territories.
Cholera epidemic
Cholera is an intestinal infection, which is accompanied by a sharp loss of fluid, dehydration of the body. Caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholera. The method of transmission of the disease - household - through water, contaminated food. There are several strains of cholera, each of which is serious in its own way. For example, Nepalese cholera, which does not cause much harm to local residents, has become a deadly virus for the population of the Dominican Republic and Haiti.
The largest foci of the epidemic recorded in Africa, Latin America, India. And although modern methods of treatment can cope with this disease, the mortality rate is still 5-10%. In Russia, the cholera epidemic of 1830 was the first large-scale manifestation of an infection of this type. Combined with the plague, it took the lives of millionspeople.
You can protect yourself and loved ones from cholera by observing the rules of personal hygiene. Those people who often travel around the country and abroad should be especially attentive to their he alth. You should always avoid questionable eateries and cafeterias. And buy food not in spontaneous markets, but in specialized places. When visiting foreign countries, it is better to vaccinate.
Three forms of cholera
Cholera is an infectious disease that affects the intestines and kidneys. The disease can occur in the human body in three forms, depending on the degree of dehydration.
- Easy. The main symptoms are diarrhea, sometimes slight vomiting, discomfort in the abdomen. Urges to the toilet can reach up to five times a day. The general he alth of the patient is satisfactory.
- Medium shape. Symptoms are diarrhea (up to ten times a day) and vomiting, which are on the rise. The patient is constantly tormented by thirst and dryness in the mouth. There may be minor cramps in the muscles, feet, fingers.
- Heavy form. Cholera disease at this stage is often fatal. Symptoms - profuse defecation, up to twenty times a day, repeated vomiting, thirst, dry mouth, hoarse voice. The body becomes dehydrated, the person acquires a characteristic appearance - a pointed face, wrinkled hands, sunken eyes. Lips, ears, skin become cyanotic. This is how cyanosis develops. Urination is made less frequently, and soon stops altogether.
Cholera is hardest hitchildren. This is because their bodies have not yet learned to cope with unusual fluid loss.
The best prevention of cholera is personal hygiene. At the slightest symptom indicating this ailment, you should immediately go to the hospital for qualified help.
How to recognize cholera?
Often this ailment is confused with other similar diseases, for example, with food poisoning, which has similar symptoms. And poisoning, as a rule, most people treat themselves. As a result, the treatment is carried out with the wrong drugs, and the disease itself can become more severe during this time.
Therefore, every person should know what cholera is, what are its symptoms and how to deal with it. So, the main signs of the disease:
- Diarrhea five to ten or more times a day. The number of bowel movements gradually increases and can reach up to one and a half liters at a time!
- Painful sensations, as in case of poisoning, are absent.
- Vomiting is on the rise. Nausea is not observed. The vomited liquid resembles rice flakes.
- Rapid dehydration. The skin becomes bluish in color. A person is tormented by constant thirst, dry mouth. What cholera looks like (photos of patients) can be seen in scientific brochures and encyclopedias (and a little in this article).
- Muscle cramps.
Cholera First Aid
If someone close to you has all the symptoms of cholera, you should immediately consult a doctor. The patient is subject to immediate hospitalization. However, there aresituations when it is not possible to get medical care so quickly (stay outside settlements). In this case, everyone should know how to give first aid.
The main rule is more liquid. How much the body loses, how much you need to try to “pour in”. It is recommended to drink 200 ml every half an hour. But it should not be just water, but a special solution (per liter of water - a teaspoon of s alt and four teaspoons of sugar).
Special attention should be paid to bowel movements and their disinfection. Ducks, personal care products should be handled carefully to prevent the spread of infection. Bedding needs to be changed frequently. Wash the patient's clothes at a temperature of 90 degrees. After washing, it is desirable to iron them.
Such precautions are mandatory, because getting infected in everyday life is not difficult.
Etiology and epidemiology of cholera
One of the terrible and incurable diseases of past centuries is cholera. Photographs of bacteria taken under a microscope make it clear that the pathogen has the form of a curved rod with one or two bundles arranged polarly to help it move.
The microbes that cause cholera are alkaline lovers. They are able to decompose starch and carbohydrates, as well as liquefy gelatin. The causative agent of infection is sensitive to drying and exposure to ultraviolet rays. When boiled, microorganisms die instantly.
Because cholera is caused by a bacterium that can be found infood and water, proper food handling is the best prevention.
If the infection enters drinking water sources, it can affect entire communities. It's about an epidemic. And when the disease is already spreading beyond the boundaries of one territory or an entire country, then a pandemic already takes place. Cholera is both a disease and an epidemic and a pandemic.
Diagnosis and treatment
Of course, you can't make a diagnosis of cholera on your own. The symptoms alone are not enough. Medical examinations are needed, which are carried out in special bacteriological laboratories. For research, the patient's discharge is necessary - vomit, cal.
If you delve into history, the cholera epidemic of 1830 in Russia took more than one life. Everything can be explained by insufficiently strong medicine of that time. Today, the disease is treatable. To do this, it is enough to make timely diagnosis and therapy.
You need to remember that cholera is an epidemic. It can affect several family members at once. Any suspicious symptoms should be a reason to go to the hospital. The incubation period of cholera ranges from several hours to five days. At this time, patients are already carriers of the infection and release the pathogen into the external environment.
Treatment of the disease is carried out only in hospitals, in special infectious diseases departments. The main task of doctors is to replenish and maintain the water balance in the patient's body. For this, saline solutions are used andmedicines.
The most common cholera bacteria is the classical biotype and El Tor cholera. Both species are sensitive to antibiotics. Therefore, treatment also includes the use of antibacterial drugs. Erythromycin is usually used.
The best protection against cholera in our time is vaccination. The vaccine is administered twice a month. Doses depend on the age of the patient.
Cholera Prevention
Cholera, like any disease, is better to prevent than to cure. To do this, it is enough to follow the rules of personal hygiene, as well as all the precautions that are used to prevent acute intestinal infections.
So:
- Cholera bacteria can be found in food and water. Therefore, you should never drink water from dubious sources. In extreme cases, it should be boiled.
- Vegetables, fruits, fish, meat and other raw foods must be thoroughly processed before consumption.
- You can't swim in water bodies where there are bans from the sanitary and epidemiological station. Perhaps the water contains a bacillus of cholera or some other disease.
- Patients with signs of cholera should be immediately hospitalized, and the room where they were disinfected.
- When visiting other countries, it is better to get vaccinated. Of course, the vaccine cannot give one hundred percent protection, but in the event of an epidemic, it will be easier for the vaccinated body to cope with the disease.
It should also be remembered that even after complete recovery, cholera bacteria can infect the body a second time. Therefore, extra vigilancecaution is in order!
How does the disease manifest itself in children?
Disease in children develops exactly as in adults. However, children are more resistant to infection.
Most often, infection occurs through water or food. But in the case of children, infection through close contact, through dirty hands, cannot be ruled out.
Cholera bacteria, getting into the body of a child, cause severe intoxication and diarrhea. The development of the disease leads to disruption of the kidneys (nephropathy), cardiac arrhythmia, and pulmonary edema. Some children develop seizures, coma. Therefore, early diagnosis of the disease is essential. In such cases, the cholera disease is curable in almost one hundred percent of cases.
Treatment of sick children, like adults, is carried out only inpatients. Therapy is aimed at replenishing the lost fluid. For severely ill patients, fluid is given intravenously.
Care for the sick also includes the thorough disinfection of utensils and bowel movements.
Don't forget about a full and he althy diet. After all, during an illness, a person loses a lot of fluid, and at the same time weight.
The best prevention of cholera in children is to teach them to always and everywhere wash their hands, food and drink only boiled water. This is especially important when the child attends a kindergarten or school.
Conclusion
The development of medicine and science in our time has provided a solution for the treatment of many dangerous diseases. For example, plague, smallpox, typhus have becomeconditional diseases, as the vaccine completely eradicated them from our lives. The cholera disease, unlike them, is still relevant in some parts of the Earth. However, effective methods of treating this disease have been found. It is enough just to ask for help in time.
The largest outbreaks of the epidemic are recorded in remote areas of Africa, Asia, and India. The main reason is polluted water, lack of sanitation, poverty and misery. For many residents of those countries, the concept of "hospital" is unfamiliar. In such cases, the diagnosis of cholera and the first emergency aid can be done independently (though not always successfully).
