Very true Bodger :thumleft:
When this particular case was reported on the TV news in my area, it was reported just as Bodger has pointed out RARE this is not correct it is media miss information at its best :roll: most cases are not recorded !!
Recently there was a case in the north where a building site worker was trying to remove some plant machinery from a area that had flooded on the site, they wore no particular personel protection equipment whilst working in some puddles, he returned to his caravan to be found dead several days later......
http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/2008/08/14/exclusive-killer-rats-alert-after-flood-worker-killed-by-rare-weil-s-disease-86908-20696342/This has been taken from the Leptospirosis Information Center
http://www.leptospirosis.org/ Click here and read it, it could save lives knowing about this disease. This family wasn't aware of it, but it isn't as rare as being made out.
Bob died of Weil's disease, the acute form of Leptospirosis, the source of which we have never found. This country is now at risk of having the same problem already being experienced throughout the world, yet we are in ignorance of the disease. Lately, many workers in our ports, water works, quarries or other areas where rats are in abundance, are being warned and given guidance as to the prevention of contacting the disease. Our doctors aren't recognising the symptoms quickly enough and if treatment is not given quick enough, the toxins invade so fast, your dying within a week. Bob had never been to a doctor in years, never been in hospital, but within a week of taking poorly, his liver and kidneys shut down, his heart and lungs becoming affected.
We have a major rat problem in this country and since last October, councils have been unable to cope with the complaints of rat populations, not only in rural areas, but housing estates and towns. Not a wonder, when we are providing them with generous amounts of food because of poor collections of waste. This Government has put us all at risk and this disease is horrible and painful.
Please click on the link I have provided and read it. If you suspect any of the symptoms, get help immediately and do not be fobbed off with flu. Early action saves your life.
Response from the Leptospirosis Information Center [CASE ID:6349FED]
In reply to your query:-
We are sorry for your loss, and fully understand your concerns over the lack of awareness in the general medical community. Leptospirosis is an infection which is 'officially' very rare in the UK, with only a few cases reported to the Health Protection Agency each year. Because of this, there is no general program of education beyond the diagnostic and specialist sectors, and medical students are unlikely to encounter the condition (or even be taught about it) unless they choose to specialise in infectious disease. One of the difficulties is that the infection presents a range of symptoms that mimic several far more common illnesses, and so a patient presenting to a GP will not stand out as anything unusual and so prompt them to seek a second opinion. Many times the diagnosis is only made when the condition worsens, as in your case, or when a patient specifically explains what they believe the cause to be (as is the case with infections from specialist occupations, where the patient has been told how to report it).
Despite the reported incidence being very low,
the true figures are of course far larger - many patients with a mild form of the infection will self-recover and often won't even contact their GP, and even in severe and fatal cases it's common for the diagnosis to be missed, and the physical effects attributed to another (more common) illness.
Education is important, and in developing countries where the infection is more common, school and community education programmes are extensively used and very effective. However in the UK a balance must be drawn between educating and causing panic, as despite there being clear risks the statistical probability of "infection per person per year" is very small. Unfortunately this ratio drives government policy, and so there is no general education program in the UK. Workplace health protection is a different issue, and employees at elevated risk are provided with extensive information by the HSE and HPA - however there are no plans to provide specific information to general practitioners, many of whom instead use services such as ours for advice.
Here is some more information.....
Rats can transmit at least 35 diseases to humans,
including leptospirosis (very, very common) and the plague (very rare). Other diseases transmittable by rats include: typhus, rabies, tularemia, trichinosis, leishmaniasis, spirilary rat bite fever, and spirochetal jaundice.
In practice, keeping yourself and your dog disease-free is relatively easy, provided you use common sense:
Inoculate your dog. Nothing is more important than a full inoculation. This should inlcude an innouculation for leptospirosis. Some dogs have an adverse reaction to this shot and some areas have a form of lepto that the vaccine does not work to prevent, but any dog that is ratting should have a lepto shot. Period.
Try to reduce your physical contact with the rats. Wear gloves. Put rubber bands around your pants legs in areas where rats are really swarming, and handle rats only by grabbing their tails. Some folks use salad tongs as "rat tongs".
Stay out of puddles and all other water where rats may have urinated. You and your dog can catch leptospirosis by coming into contact with puddles and other water into which a rat may have urinated. Have a ready supply of clean water your dog can drink from so it is less likely to drink from a puddle into which a rat has urinated.
Do not let your dog chew on a rat. Most dogs will bite, shake, snap, and drop a rat in the speed it takes to read this sentence. If your dog attempts to carry or chew on the rat, discourage this by yelling at it, bribing it, or even smacking it (gently) in the muzzle with a leash. In fact, some dogs are simply "mashers" and "crunchers" and there is nothing to be done about it.
After ratting use bleach. Wash you clothes with an extra shot of bleach, take a hot shower, and use bleach on your hands with special attention around the fingernails.
If you get sick, go to a doctor FAST. Most diseases are treatable, but getting to a doctor early is important in every single case. If you cannot afford to go to a doctor, do not go ratting.
Leptospirosis or Weil's Disease
An astonishing 55 percent of all rats are reputed to carry leptospirosis, with
over 66 percent of all city rats reportedly infected. Also called "rat catcher's yellows", leptospirosis is very easily
transmittable to both dogs and humans. Nearly every animal can catch
leptospirosis -- horses, pigs, cats, dogs, human -- but the rat, ironically,
is immune.
• Assume all rats have letospirosis.
• You do not need to be bitten by a rat to catch the disease. Leptospirosis can be transmitted through contact with water into which a dog or rat has urinated. If you see a puddle of water near where you see rats, assume it is highly contaminated.
• Leptospirosis attacks the liver in both humans and dogs, and causes a kind of jaundice. Dogs (and humans too, presumably) with leptospirosis have feces that are putty-colored since they are devoid of the pigment produced by bile which has been diverted to the skin (causing a yellowing of the eyes and skin in humans).
• Dogs with leptospirosis are listless, off-color, and will generally refuse to go on walks. Though they will be off their food, they will be very thirsty and drink a great deal of water. At the same time they are consuming vast quantities of water, a dog will become dehydrated as it tries to flush its body of the disease.
• Treatment is fairly expensive and takes time as it relies an massive amounts of antibiotics. Animals can die even with antibiotic treatment.
• Prevention through inoculation may be possible. The good news is that an annual inoculation against leptospiral jaundice is often effective, but some dogs have adverse reactions to lepto vaccine, and some areas have forms of lepto for which no vaccine has yet been developed.
I hope this will come in use to all of you, when dealing with rat problems