Travel Infections Flashcards
What points of the infection model are particularly relevant when considering travel related infections?
Calendar time
Relative time
Recent places
Why is calendar time particularly important when considering travel related infections?
Different parts of the world are experiencing different seasons, and so different pathogens will be prevalent
Why is relative time important when considering travel related infections?
Infectious diseases have varying incubation periods
What is it important to consider when looking at relative time and travel infections?
How long ago a person travelled
Which diseases could present after the length of time
Why is it important to consider recent places with travel infections?
When travelling, recent places will more than likely vary from the current, and so its important to consider what infections are prevalent in these places
Give two examples of bacterium that are more common outside of the UK
Rickettsia
Spirochaete
What category of parasites are more common outside of the UK?
Both protozoa and helminths
What do the types of pathogens likely to infect people vary depending on?
The person affected
Who are at highest risk of developing travel related infections?
Extreme age
Immunocompromised
What is key to identifying the source of a travel related infection?
Taking a good history
Why must some patients with travel related infections be isolated?
To stop the spread of infections in this country
What is the most important travel related infection to consider first?
Usually, malaria
How does the prevalence of pathogens differ in different regions of the world?
Different pathogens have a higher prevalence in different regions of the world, even for the same disease
Give an example of where the prevalence of different pathogens causing the same disease differ depending on region of the world
Plasmodium falciparum commonly causes malaria in Africa, but in India it is more commonly caused by Plasmodium vivax/ovale
Why is it so important that a good travel history is taken when looking at travel related diseases?
The ability to recognise imported disease
There are different strains of the same pathogen
Infection prevention
Why is it important to recognise imported disease?
Most imported diseases will be rare in the UK and some will have been unknown to have occurred in the UK, so often little will be known about them by most people
Why is it important to consider that there are different strains of the same pathogen?
Can be antigenically different
Different strains can exhibit different levels of antibiotic resistance to different antimicrobials
Why is it important to consider that different strains of the same pathogen may be antigenically different?
This impacts protection/detection from/of the causative organism
Where is infection prevention important in travel related infections?
Both on wards and in laboratories
What does a good travel history allow regarding infection prevention?
Staff to take the appropriate measures to prevent the spread of infection
What questions is it important to ask when someone presents with a potential travel related infection?
Where have they been
When did the symptoms begin
What are the signs and symptoms
How did they acquire it
What are the important places a patient may have been to consider?
Sub-saharan Africa
South East Asia
South/Central America
What are the less important, but still notable, places a patient may have been to consider?
North Africa and the Middle East
South/Central Asia
North Australia
North America
What can discovering when the symptoms begun help identify?
The incubation period
What may identifying the incubation period help determine?
The pathogen
What are the potential incubation periods?
<10 days
10-21 days
>21 days
What are the potential signs and symptoms of travel related infections?
Respiratory problems GI problems Skin Jaundice CNS Haemotological problems Eosinophilia
What are the potential respiratory problems with travel related infections?
SOB
Cough
What are the potential GI problems with travel related infections?
Diarrhoea
What are the potential skin problems with travel related infections?
Rash
What are the potential CNS problems with travel related infections?
Headache
Meningism
What are the potential haemotological problems with travel related infections?
Lymphadenopathy
Splenomegaly
Haemorrhage
How could someone acquire a travel related infection?
Food/water Insect/tick bite Swimming Sexual contact Animal contact Beach/recreational activities
What key aspects of a person’s travel history is it helpful to know?
Any unwell companions/contacts?
Any pre-travel vaccinations/preventative measures?
What recreational activities did they take part in?
What sort of health care were they exposed to, if any?
What is malaria caused by?
One of five species of the protozoal genius, Plasmodium
What are the most common plasmodiums causing malaria?
Plasmodium vivax
Plasmodium falciparum
What % of malaria cases are caused by Plasmodium vivax?
~80%
Where is plasmodium vivax most prevalent?
In India and other countries outside of sub-Saharan Africa
What % of malaria cases are caused by Plasmodium falciparum?
~15% of cases
Where is plasmodium falciparum most prevalent?
Africa
What are the less common plasmodiums causing malaria?
Ovale
Malariae
By what method is malaria transmitted?
Vector
What is the vector for malaria transmission?
The female Anopheles mosquito, or an infected, blood contaminated needle
How many cases of malaria are there per year globally?
250 million
How many deaths from malaria are there per year globally?
1 million
What is the most commonly imported infection to the UK?
Malaria
How many cases of malaria are there in the UK per year?
1500
How many deaths from malaria are there in the UK per year?
Up to 11
What % of cases of malaria in the UK are caused by P. Falciparum?
75%
Are deaths from malaria in the UK avoidable?
Most should be
Describe the life cycle of malaria plasmodium
Plasmodium sporozoites are injected into the bloodstream and migrate to the liver
They form cyst-like structures containing thousands of merozoites
The merozoites are then released and infect RBCs and use Hb for nutrition
Eventually the infected RBCs rupture, releasing merozoites that can infect other RBCs
What happens if large numbers of erythrocytes rupture at once in malaria?
It can cause a sudden onset of fever
Why can large numbers of erythrocytes rupturing at once cause fever in malaria?
As large amounts of toxins are released
What is the consequence of RBC lysis?
Anaemia
What is the most dangerous plasmodium causing malaria?
P. Falciparum
Why is P. Falciparum the most dangerous plasmodium?
As it infects red blood cells of all ages
What will P. Malariae, vivax, and ovale invade?
Either young or old red cells, but not both
What is the results of the specific invasion of RBCs by P. Malariae, vivax, and ovale?
Causes a milder form of the disease
What is the incubation period for malaria?
Minimum 6 days
What is the incubation period for P. Falciparum?
Up to 12 days
What is the incubation period of p. Vivax/ovale?
Can take up to 1 year +
How will a patient normally present with malaria?
Fever, chills, and sweats that cycle every 3rd or 4th day
Often few examinable signs other than fever and sometimes splenomegaly
What systems can the symptoms of severe falciparum malaria affect?
Cardiovascular Respiratory GI Renal CNS Blood Metabolic Secondary infections
What are the cardiovascular symptoms of severe falciparum malaria?
Tachycardia
Hypotension
Arrhythmias
What are the respiratory symptoms of severe falciparum malaria?
ARDS
What are the GI symptoms of severe falciparum malaria?
Diarrhoea
Deranged LFTs
Bilirubin
What are the renal symptoms of severe falciparum malaria?
Acute kidney injury
What are the CNS symptoms of severe falciparum malaria?
Confusion
Fits
Cerebral malaria
What are the blood symptoms of severe falciparum malaria?
Low/normal WCC
Thromocytopenia
DIC
What are the metabolic symptoms of severe falciparum malaria?
Metabolic acidosis
Hypoglycaemia