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Rabies
Rabies is a
preventable viral disease of mammals most
often transmitted through the bite of a
rabid animal. The vast majority of rabies
cases reported to the Centers for Disease
Control and Prevention (CDC) each year occur
in wild animals like raccoons, skunks, bats,
and foxes. Domestic animals account for
less than 10 % of the reported rabies cases,
with cats, cattle, and dogs most often
reported rabid.
Rabies virus
infects the central nervous system causing
encephalopathy and ultimately death. Early
symptoms of rabies in humans are
nonspecific, consisting of fever, headache,
and general malaise. As the disease
progresses, neurological symptoms appear and
may include insomnia, anxiety, confusion,
slight or partial paralysis, excitation,
hallucinations, agitation, hypersalivation,
difficulty swallowing, and hydrophobia (fear
of water). Death usually occurs within days
of the onset of symptoms.
www.cdc.gov
Histoplasmosis
Histoplasmosis is a disease caused by the
fungus Histoplasma capsulatum. Its symptoms
vary greatly, but the disease primarily
affects the lungs. Occasionally, other
organs are affected. This form of the
disease is called disseminated
histoplasmosis, and is can be fatal if
untreated.
Histoplasma
Capsulatum grows in soil and material
contaminated with bat or bird droppings.
Spores become airborne when contaminated
soil is disturbed. Breathing the spores
causes infection. The disease is not
transmitted from an infected person to
someone else.
www.cdc.gov
Raccoon Roundworm
The raccoon,
Procyon lotor, is a free-ranging mammal
found throughout urban and rural areas of
North America. Raccoons harbor a wide
variety of infectious agents and parasites,
many of which are zoonotic. One of these,
the raccoon roundworm, Baylisascaris
procyonis (Nematoda: Ascaridoidea), is a
well known cause of visceral, ocular, and
neural larva migrans in humans and other
animals. Fatal or severe central nervous
system (CNS) disease from Baylisascaris
procyonis has been reported in >90 species
of birds and mammals; 13 known cases of
neural larva migrans were reported in
humans, primarily in children <2 years of
age.
A key
feature of the epidemiology of
baylisascariasis is the behavior of
raccoons. Raccoons habitually defecate in
communal sites called latrines. The
locations of latrines are associated with
various natural and human-made structures.
In urban and suburban areas, raccoons
establish latrines on rooftops, in attics,
in and around chimneys, and on other roof
protrusions, stumps, woodpiles, decks, and
lawns
www.cdc.gov
Hantavirus Pulmonary
Syndrome (HPS)
Hantavirus
Pulmonary Syndrome (HPS) is a deadly disease
from rodents. Humans can contract the
disease when they come into contact with
infected rodents or their urine and
droppings. HPS was first recognized in 1993
and has since been identified throughout the
United States. Although rare, HPS is
potentially deadly. Rodent control in and
around the home remains the primary strategy
for preventing hantavirus infection.
www.cdc.gov |
