- Treatment for Mormo's disease
- Complications of glanders disease
- Symptoms of Mormo's disease
- How to avoid Mormo disease
- Mormo's disease can be chronic
Mormo's disease, common in animals such as horses, mules and donkeys, can infect humans, causing difficulty in breathing, chest pain, pneumonia, pleural effusion and also forming wounds on the skin and mucous membranes.
The human being can be infected with the bacterium B. Mallei , which causes the disease, through inhalation or contact with the secretions of an infected animal, which may be present in the animal's water cooler, harness and tools, for example.
Treatment for Mormo's disease
The treatment for glanders disease, also known as Lamparão, is done with hospitalization using a combination of antibiotics for a few days. During hospitalization, blood tests and x-rays must be performed to observe the evolution of the disease and to adopt specific treatments for the organs that may be affected.
Depending on the state in which the patient arrives at the hospital, it may be necessary to offer oxygen through a mask or to put it on to breathe with the help of devices.
Complications of glanders disease
Complications of glanders disease can arise when its treatment is not carried out as soon as the symptoms appear and can be severe with pulmonary involvement and dissemination of the bacteria through the blood, with septicemia. In this case there may be fever, chills, pain in the muscles, in addition to chest pain and difficulty breathing and signs of impairment of the liver and other organs such as yellow skin and eyes, abdominal pain and tachycardia, and there may be multiple organ failure and death.
Symptoms of Mormo's disease
Initially, the symptoms of Mormo's disease in humans may be nonspecific causing nausea, dizziness, muscle pain, severe headache and loss of appetite, until they appear:
- Night sweat, general malaise; Rounded wounds of approximately 1 cm on the skin or mucous membranes, which initially looks like a blister, but which gradually becomes an ulcer; The face, especially the nose, may become swollen, making it difficult for the air; Nasal discharge with pus; Sore lymph nodes, lingual; Gastrointestinal signs such as severe diarrhea.
Lungs, liver and spleen are usually affected but the bacteria can affect any organ and even the muscles.
The incubation period can reach 14 days, but symptoms usually appear within 5 days, although chronic cases can take months to manifest.
The diagnosis of glandular disease in humans can be made through the culture of B. mallei in lesions, blood tests or PCR. The malein test, despite being indicated for animals, is not used in humans. The lung x-ray is indicated to assess the involvement of this organ, but it does not serve to confirm the diagnosis of glanders disease.
How to avoid Mormo disease
To prevent Mormo's disease it is recommended to wear gloves and boots when dealing with animals that may be contaminated because no vaccine is available. The visible symptoms that help identify the disease in animals are nasal discharge, fever and wounds from the animal's body, but a blood test can confirm that the animal is contaminated and must be slaughtered.
Transmission from one person to another is rare and there is no need for isolation, although visits to the hospital are restricted to allow the patient to rest and recover. Sexual contact and breastfeeding should not be encouraged during the duration of the disease.
Mormo's disease can be chronic
Mormo's disease can be chronic, which is a milder form of the disease. In this case, the symptoms are mild, similar to the flu and can cause skin lesions, in the form of ulcers, that appear from time to time., with weight loss and swollen and painful languages. There are reports that the disease can last for about 25 years.
However, when symptoms appear suddenly and are very intense, glanders disease is classified as acute and is severe, requiring immediate medical attention as it is potentially fatal.
