Travel related infections Flashcards
What are the 3 categories for incubation periods?
less than 10 days
10-21 days
21+ days
How can tropical infections be aquired?
- food/ water
- insect/ tick bite
- swimming
- sexual contact
- animal contact (bite/ safari)
- beach/ recreational activities
Which species of malaria are most common and where are they common?
- plasmodium falciparum is most common in africa
- plasmodium vivax and ovale are most common in india
What mosquito carries the malaria protozoa?
female anopheles
What is the incubation period of p. falciparum and p. vivax/ ovale?
falciparum: 6-12 days
p. vivax/ ovale: up to 1 yr + (usually 10-17 days)
What will be presentation of mild malaria?
- always have fever, other symptoms are more vague and variable
- headache
- dry cough
- muscular fatigue and pain
- chills and sweating
- nausia
- vomiting
- mild hepatoslenomagaly
What will be the presentation of a severe malarial infection?
- fluid in lungs
- Loss of liver function
- loss of renal function
- confusion, fits and seizures
- low/ normal WBC
- low platelets
- DIC
- acidosis
- hypoglycaemia
- tachycardia, arrthmias, hypotension
What investigations should be done for someone with malaria?
- 3 blood films (need 3 negatives to exclude it)
- FBC, U&E, LFTs, glucose and coagulaiton
- head CT if CNS symptoms
- CXR
What will be blood test and blood film results of someone with malaria?
- anaemia, low WBC and platelets (haemolytic anaemia makes spleen enlarge so more blood pools in spleen)
- LFT normal when mild
- urea and creatinine increase- renal injury
- bilirubin high (heamolysis)
- high CRP
- protozoa seen as dark purple dots within RBCs on blood film
Describe the life cycle of plasmodium falciparum
- Enter blood through mosquito as a sporozoite
- then go into hepatocyte and become a schizont
- which multiplies within hepatocyte and becomes a merozoite
- merozoite reproduce within the RBC and then destroy them by haemolysis
- merozoites travel in blood and in some RBCs become gametocytes which go back into mosquito when mosquito takes their blood
- in mosquito it matures into sporoziote
What is the result of a salmonella thyphi/ paratyphi infection?
thyphoid and paratyphoid (which is milder) - enteric fever
Where is enteric fever common and how is it aquired?
asia, some in africa and S america
- faecal oral from contaminated food and water
WHat is incubation period and symptoms of enteric fever?
7-14 days
- fever
- headache
- abdodiscomfort
- sometimes constipation, diarrohea or nothing
- dry cough
What is major complication of enteric fever?
intestinal haemorhagge and perforation
How is malaria treated?
If P. flaciparum: artesunate or quinine and doxycycline
If other: chloroquine (lots of resisstance to this) or primaquine (will destroy dormant protozoa in liver to stop reoccurance)
