Katherine residents are right to fear the potentially lethal mud bug melioidosis, says Centre for Disease Control director Vicki Krause.
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“Absolutely, it is in our environment and we cannot escape it, we have to know who is at risk and how to protect ourselves,” Dr Krause said.
"This is a serious disease and every year there are deaths.”
This year, two residents of the Katherine region have so far contracted melioidosis, a mud borne disease which thrives in wet season conditions.
Twenty-six people in the NT have fallen victim to the infection since October last year.
Dr Krause said Top End residents and visitors need to protect themselves from the potentially deadly soil-borne disease, as cases have increased with heavy rains.
“The most common way to contract it is when you have cuts and sores then expose them to groundwater or soil,” Dr Krause said.
“But it can also be inhaled if it’s stirred up by whipping winds.
“The most common way people are infected is when they are walking through flooded areas or working outside,” she said.
“If you are using a high pressured hose you should wear a mask because the soil can be aerosolised.”
An average of 60 people contract the disease each year in the NT.
Dr Krause said usually three or four of them are from Katherine.
Cases have been hospitalised with some very seriously ill, requiring intensive care.
The disease can lead to blood poisoning, and death for 10 and 15 per cent of Territory patients.
Melioidosis, a disease caused by the tropical bacteria known as Burkholderia pseudomallei, is commonly known as gardener’s disease.
The disease can cause a variety of symptoms and signs but the most common presentation is that of pneumonia which means a person develops unexplained fever, cough and shortness of breath.
Other presentations include skin ulcers or sores that fail to heal, abscesses, weight loss, fatigue, abdominal pain, urinary symptoms and occasionally neurological problems such as headache and confusion.
People most as risk of developing melioidosis have an underlying condition that impairs the immune system.
These conditions include:
- diabetes
- heavy alcohol intake
- Cancer and the regimens to treat cancer
- advanced age
- kidney and lung disease.
Top End residents and visitors should take the following precautions:
- Wear covered footwear when outdoors
- Wear gloves while working in the garden/soil-based environment
- Wash and cuts and sore thoroughly and cover them with waterproof dressings
- Wear face masks while using high pressure hoses around soil
- Stay indoors during heavy wind and rain
- Refrain from overuse of alcohol
- Seek medical attention early.