Zika: frequently asked questions

Posted on May 13, 2017 by SoClaimon

ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/news/life/living_health/30297828

October 17, 2016 05:34
By DR ON-UMAR BANPAMAI

What is the Zika virus and how is it transmitted?

The Zika virus is a member of the flavivirus family; patients can contract the virus by getting bitten by infected mosquitoes. It is related to other flaviviruses such as yellow fever virus, dengue virus, Japanese encephalitis and West Nile virus. The first large outbreak of the disease was reported on the island of Yap in 2007. In July 2015, Brazil reported a correlation between cases of Zika virus infection and microcephaly, a birth defect where a baby’s head is smaller than normal.

The Zika virus can be transmitted via the following:

The bite of an infected Aedes mosquito, which breeds in water and usually bites during the day
Sexual intercourse (including anal, vaginal and oral sex) with a person who is infected
Blood transfusions
Organ or tissue transplantation
Transmission from a pregnant mother to the foetus

There have been no reports of the Zika virus being transmitted through breastfeeding.

Am I at risk of contracting it?

You are at risk of contracting the Zika virus if you have travelled to endemic areas. Currently, these places include countries in Southeast Asia, the Pacific Islands, Africa and South America. Coming into contact with a person who’s been to these places also increases your chance of contracting the virus. A detailed list of all the countries with endemic Zika can be found at: http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/page/zika-information

What are the symptoms and warning signs?

The incubation period is between three and 12 days. Symptoms of the Zika virus include:

Fever of around 37.8 to 38.5 Celsius in adults
Rash
Red eyes
Joint pain, especially in the hands and feet
Muscle pain
Joint swelling
Headache
Fatigue
Diarrhoea
Swollen lymph nodes

Some patients with Zika have also suffered from the Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS), leading to paralysis. Others have problems with the brain or nerve issues. However, these cases occur very rarely. People who suspect they might have contracted Zika should see a doctor immediately so the spread of the disease can be contained.

How harmful is the Zika virus?

People very rarely die of Zika. Most people infected will only experience mild symptom lasting for two to seven days. However, it can cause major problems in infants who are infected before birth, leading to brain defects, hearing deficits, defects of the eye and impaired growth. Guillain-Barre syndrome (GBS) has also been detected in endemic areas.

How is Zika virus prevented?

Although there is no prophylaxis medication or vaccine for prevention of Zika, you can protect yourself by following these measures:

Avoid travelling to endemic areas, especially if you are pregnant.
Protect yourself from mosquito bites by wearing long trousers and long sleeves and using insect repellent. If you are pregnant, make sure that the repellent is safe for pregnant women and breastfeeding mothers. Do not use repellent on babies, but use mosquito nets instead. Stay in rooms with air conditioning or screens and cover water tanks so that mosquitoes cannot enter and breed.
Abstain from sexual intercourse or only engage in protected sex to prevent sexual transmission of Zika. Men who have displayed symptoms should not have sex for six months, women for at least eight weeks. Men and women with no symptoms, but who have been to endemic areas, should not have sex for eight weeks. Pregnant women who might have been exposed to the virus should only have protected sex or abstain from the act altogether during pregnancy.

How is the Zika virus detected?

If you have symptoms of the Zika virus, you should get tested. If you are a woman who’s travelled to an infected area and have experienced no symptoms, the test is still recommended. Zika infection can be diagnosed through a blood test or a urine test. For infants and children who might be infected, tests are carried out in the same way. Recent travel history, sexual history (in the case of adults) and symptoms will also be taken into account.

Pregnant women who display symptoms or have been living in endemic areas should get tested as soon as possible. Early testing, in cases of positive results, will allow for treatment plans to be made immediately.

How is Zika virus treated?

There is no specific medication for Zika. The doctor can only provide symptomatic treatment. It is recommended that you drink plenty of fluids and get lots of rest. You can take Tylenol to relieve aches and pains, but do not take aspirin or other non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS). If you are taking medication for any other condition, let your doctor know first.

DR ON-UMAR BANPAMAI is an Internist specialising in infectious diseases at Samitivej Sukhumvit Hospital. Dr Tassanee Sookpranee, is a paediatrician specialising |in infectious diseases at the same hospital. Call (02) 022 2555-6

Mononucleosis: benign but not always

Posted on May 13, 2017 by SoClaimon

ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/news/life/living_health/30297323

October 11, 2016 01:00
By DR GERARD LALANDE

Special to The Nation

A contagious illness affecting primarily children and adolescents, infectious mononucleosis

The disease, which is caused by the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), is considered benign though serious complications can occur, especially in older individuals.

The EBV belongs to the same virus family as the herpes and varicella (chicken pox) viruses. It is widespread, with statistics showing that as many as 90 per cent of middle-aged adults have been exposed to the disease. In young children, the disease is often unnoticed and leads to lifetime immunity that protects the individual from a second infection.

Symptoms are thus more prevalent among adolescents and adults. Following an incubation period that varies from two weeks to several months, the early manifestations mimic flu, with extreme fatigue, high fever around 38.5 to 40 degrees Celsius, muscle pain, headache and sore throat with swollen tonsils.

A clinical exam will reveal multiple swollen lymph nodes, especially in the neck as well as an enlarged spleen, both as a result of the virus’s significant immunologic reaction within the body. Similarly, this reaction may also trigger disorders of blood cell formation with low red blood cells, abnormal white blood cells and low platelets or clot forming cells.

In the majority of the cases, recovery happens spontaneously after two to three weeks but marked fatigue often persists for several weeks and even months.

Complications are infrequent and mainly occur in teenagers and young adults. The enlarged spleen might become more vulnerable to abdominal trauma and could lead, although rarely, to a life-threatening rupture of the spleen requiring emergency surgery. In addition, the dissemination of the virus in the body can lead to significant inflammation of major organs. Among these are the liver with hepatitis that may result in a jaundice, the heart with myocarditis or inflammation of heart muscle, and the nervous system with meningitis and the Guillain-Barr syndrome, the latter an autoimmune disorder attacking the nerve cells.

As the symptoms are not specific to the disease, diagnosis is usually not made solely on the clinical exam and blood tests are needed to confirm the infection. The complete blood count (CBC) often reveals the presence of an abnormally high proportion of one type of white blood cells known as monocytes, which is suggestive of mononucleosis and from which disease gets it name. More importantly, immunologic tests that can detect the antibodies to the EBV, such as the monospot test, finally confirm the diagnosis of mononucleosis.

Currently, there is no anti-viral therapy nor vaccine effective against the EBV. Treatment simply aims at alleviating high fever and muscle pain with paracetamol or ibuprofen.

Aspirin is contraindicated among children younger than 16 years of age because its use has been associated with a higher risk of Reye’s syndrome, a rare but severe complication of viral infection. Antibiotics are not indicated unless there is a patent bacterial infection on the tonsils or sinuses. Complications are dealt with according to the site of viral inflammation.

If you are suffering from mononucleosis, prolonged rest, proper nutrition and good hydration are essential elements of recovery. It is essential to avoid vigorous exercise due to the risk of spleen rupture and wise to only progressively resume normal daily activities.

You are likely to remain contagious for several weeks after the fever has disappeared so you should refrain from kissing people and sharing cutlery and flatware during this period to avoid spreading the infection.

DR GERARD LALANDE is managing director of CEO-Health, |which provides medical referrals for expatriates and customised |executive medical check-ups in Thailand. He can be contacted at gerard.lalande@ceo-health.com

Dealing with the most common DIY emergencies

Posted on May 13, 2017 by SoClaimon

ศาสตร์เกษตรดินปุ๋ย : ขอบคุณแหล่งข้อมูล : หนังสือพิมพ์ The Nation

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/news/life/living_health/30297324

October 11, 2016 01:00
By TOM NEBE

DEUTSCHE PRESSE-AGENTUR

It happens to all DIY enthusiasts: the hammer slips and lands on your finger.

Or maybe you forget to turn off the electricity while installing a lamp? Experts say it pays to know how to act in DIY emergencies.

With countless YouTube videos walking DIY enthusiasts through increasingly complex home improvement jobs, home improvement has never seemed easier (or cheaper).

But an overconfidence in abilities can easily lead to painful accidents during odd jobs at home. Poor planning, rushed jobs and using the wrong tools are common risk factors, says Susanne Woelk of Germany’s Safe Home campaign.

That’s why it’s essential to know how to respond to the most common DIY accidents:

Slipped hammer: Many a child can remember the sound of a hammering, followed by their father’s voice cursing loudly. A split second of lapsed concentration is all it takes for a DIY fan to miss the nail and hit their own finger instead.

If it happens, the first thing to do is cool your finger. If it doesn’t feel broken, wait an hour or two, says Professor Florian Gebhard, chairman of the German Society for Casualty Surgery.

Should the pain persist or even increase over time, consult a doctor. “That can indicate a broken phalanx,” the expert notes. Blood under the nails often needs to be let out with a needle.

Electric shock: It’s easy enough to forget to turn off the electricity while working on installing a lamp.

In such cases, electrical wires will send a current into your hands, flowing through your body down to your feet, before it leaves. That means it also flows through your heart.

“It can therefore lead to dangerous arrhythmia, though not necessarily,” says Heribert Brueck, spokesman for the German Association of Registered Cardiologists.

If you feel faint or dizzy or if a dark spot appears in your vision, you should check with a doctor. If you feel very sick or lose consciousness, you should immediately call an emergency doctor.

Cuts: Blood pours out of a deep cut. You were cutting cardboard a second ago. Now you’re clenching your index finger.

Injuries like these can be particularly critical when they are on your hands or feet, Gebhard says. These body parts have many nerves and tendons in very little space, making it is easy to slice one of them.

You should keep an eye on the area around the wound even after the bleeding stops. If you cut your finger and it feels tingly or asleep, that’s a warning sign. “You may have hurt a nerve,” the expert notes.

Surface wounds in areas with more fatty tissue and fewer nerves and tendons, like the thigh, are usually less critical.

A sawn-off finger: When it comes to working with a saw, routine can be fatal. After the twentieth log, you might find yourself losing concentration. But before you notice you need a break, the tip of your finger is gone.

It’s essential to act fast. Stop the bleeding in the stump with a pressure bandage. Dry the detached portion of the finger and put it in a plastic bag. Then put that bag inside another one filled with cold water and a little bit of ice, Gebhard explains.

Never put the cut-off portion of the finger in direct contact with ice. “The cells could freeze, and then the finger would be dead,” the expert says.

Bruising: You are piling up bricks, one after the other. You have almost finished. But the last brick falls on your arm from a height of over one metre. The spot it hits immediately swells.

As with sports injuries, you should apply the so-called RICE technique, Brueck notes: Rest, Ice, Compress and, if necessary, Elevate.

If the swelling is superficial and clearly visible, it’s probably harmless. With deeper swelling that presses into the muscles, bruises can lead to compartment syndrome. Muscles may get an insufficient supply of blood, which can cause paralysis in severe cases.

Swelling in the chest and abdominal areas can also cause damage to the surrounding organs. You should consult a doctor if the pain persists after two days.

Dealing with the most common DIY emergencies

TOM NEBE

DEUTSCHE PRESSE-AGENTUR

It happens to all DIY enthusiasts: the hammer slips and lands on your finger. Or maybe you forget to turn off the electricity while installing a lamp? Experts say it pays to know how to act in DIY emergencies.