Avoiding Disease Leptospirosis

Leptospirosis is actually a disease of animals that can infect humans (zoonoses). Often regarded as post-flood disease because it often appears after the flood, or in areas after flooding.Although our society has not been long familiar with leptospirosis, after an outbreak occur in some city that flooded some time ago, but actually this is not a new disease. In the world of veterinary medicine, the disease is not a stranger anymore, even been known for a long time.Vaccination of pets against leptospirosis disease has also been regularly performed.

Cause

Leptospirosis in animals is also called Weil's disease (Weil's Disease). The cause is bacteria Leptospira. These bugs live and breed in bodies of animals. All animals can be infected. Most mice and other rodents, other animals. Pets and wild animals can also sometimes affected as well. Leptospira that have been known to have a lot of aspects imunologiknya serovars, approximately 175 serovars. Among the serovars that have little cross-immunity. Infection by leptospira can be by one or more serovars. In animals, who frequently found serovars were L.Hardjo, L. Pamona, L. grippotyphosa, L.Canicola, and L. Ichterohaemorrhagiae.

The period of leptospirosis shoots about 10 days.Two weeks after the flood subsided in Jakarta, while flood victims clean up the former flood deposits, cases of leptospirosis occur. Perhaps there are germs, which are left in dirty water flooding.

When infection occurs, the patient's body within 6-12 days will be formed immune agglutination.Leptospira bacteria shaped twisted yarn, which in the end as related, a length of 60-20 micro m and a diameter of 0.1 to 0.2 micro m. These bacteria can move back and forth.

In early cases the doctor may not suspect leptospirosis. The disease is not uncommon and may be forgotten, because there has not been recorded jangkitannya in Jakarta. That's because in the early cases could be a doctor miss the diagnosis so that patients given antibiotics too late. If late untreated, leptospirosis complications of kidney damage, in addition to liver and brain.

Prevention Efforts

Leptospira germs can survive several months in water and soil, but die by the disinfectant, such as lisol. Therefore, efforts to "lisolisasi" the entire surface of the floor, walls, and the house of an estimated contaminated dirty water flooding that may have leptospira, was considered easy and inexpensive way to prevent the emergence of leptospirosis.

In addition to neighborhood and environmental sanitation, hygiene and its individual done by keeping hands clean. Besides exposed dirty water, hands can be contaminated with germs from pets that have been affected by the disease from rodents or wild animals. Avoid contact with pet urine.

Get used to wear personal protective equipment, such as rubber gloves when in contact with dirty water, skin protective clothing, bare feet, wearing boots, especially if there are skin wounds, ulcers, or eczema.

Always wash hands after handling animals, livestock, or clean the barn, kitchen, and dirty places. Pets attacked directly leptospirosis treated, and who are still healthy given the vaccination. Leptospirosis vaccination apply to animals.

Environmental hygiene, in particular, should be carried out continuously. Do not give the opportunity to breed mice in the house. Even the house rats need to be exterminated down to their nests. Similarly, if there are other rodents.

Do not forget for the daily activities at the ranch, or are working in the ranch. Horses, pigs, cows, can be infected with leptospirosis, in addition to squirrels, and other wild animals that may stop by the farms and settlements, or when we're hunting, camping, and work out at the lake or river.

Leptospirosis is transmitted directly from person to person. However, the diseased animal urine leptospirosis in water, food, and soil, which is the scene of this animal disease transmission to the human body.