typhoid fever

As recently as March 2008 , the New York Times reported that officials in Nassau County issued a health warning to anyone who have eaten at Mama Sbarro 's . Health officials have found out that a food handler at the Italian chain had typhoid fever (Fernandez , 2008

While the health risk to the public was low , but since typhoid fever , a bacterial infection that can endanger one 's life if left untreated , is usually spread via liquids and food contaminated with feces from a carrier (Fernandez , 2008

What It Is

According to

the Department of Health Services of Oregon , typhoid fever is an illness caused by bacteria called Salmonella typhi (Department of Human Services , undated

Dr . Jerry Balentine , DO , FACEP , added that typhoid fever may also come from a related bacterium called Salmonella paratyphi (Balentine , 2008

On average , around 400 people in America gets the disease , 70 of which are contracted while travailing internationally . Around the world typhoid fever affects 12 .5 million people (Department of Human Services undated

In fact , typhoid fever is actually common in most parts of the world The only exceptions are industrialized regions such as the U .S Australia , Japan , western Europe and Canada

Symptoms and Pathology

The Salmonella bacteria , once it gets into one 's body , will invade the small intestine and enter the bloodstream . It will go through the white blood cells in the liver , bone marrow and spleen , where it multiplies It then re-enters the bloodstream (Balentine , 2008

According to the World Health Organization , symptoms usually develops from one to three weeks after the initial exposure , and usually includes high fever , nausea , loss of appetite , headache , red spots on the chest either diarrhea or constipation , malaise , and an enlargement of the liver and spleen (World Health Organization , undated

The Mayo Clinic adds that those who don 't seek medical help for typhoid fever may become sicker as they enter the second stage , which is characterized by the continuance of very high fevers , severe diarrhea or constipation . In the second stage , the patient usually loses a lot of weight , and one 's abdomen may become extremely distended (Mayo Clinic 2006

Further into the disease 's progression , the patient may become delirious and lethargic . One may also become exhausted . Dangerous complications often develop at this stage (Mayo Clinic , 2006

Mental dullness and meningitis have been seen in severe forms of typhoid fever (World Health Organization , undated

Dr . Balentine adds that death can occur from overwhelming infection intestinal bleeding or perforation , and pneumonia (Balentine , 2008

How It Is Spread

The New York State Department of Health warns that anyone can contract typhoid fever . Travelers to other countries , however , are most at risk On a local scale , the disease is spread via exposure to a chronic carrier (New York State Department of Health , undated

The bacteria is usually passed in the feces , and in other cases , urine of infected people , usually in food and drinks (New York State Department of Health , undated

Dr . Balentine explains that patients...