martyn1954
Last active 5857 days ago
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- 22 Nov 2009 22:41
- Last posted
- 24 Sep 2010 12:40
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Forum: Stickies
Thread: Weils Disease
24 Sep 2010
@ 12:40pm
@ 12:40pm
In reply to Post #228
Hello all,
I thought I should post this as a bit of a warning to everyone.
I have just spent 11 days seriously ill in Broomfield Hospital Chelmsford with Weil's Disease (Leptospirosis).
I'm pretty sure I must have contracted it while barbel fishing on the River Wye around the Symonds Yat area.
As I'm sure most of you will know that the disease is carried and passed on in the urine of infected rats. This can enter the body via a cut or through the mouth, nose or eyes. The incubation period for the disease is anything from 3-28 days. I can only describe the symptoms as starting off like flu - aching all over and a severe headache, nausea then changing to almost malaria like symptoms with a 39c temperature and uncontrollable shivering, chest pain, sweating and a rash on one shin which ulcerated.
The worrying thing is because it's not that common the cases are often mis-diagnosed or not recorded. I was lucky because I was originally diagnosed with pnuemonia but due to my sister-in-laws quick thinking, adding up the symptoms and my visit to the Wye everything fell into place, although the doctors weren't convinced at first.
The treatment was then changed to huge doses of the strongest IV antibiotics which soon started to work on the illness.
Weil's is something we are all aware of but possibly don't take enough precautions against it. When I go fishing next I am going to take some sanitising wipes or a spray to use before eating sandwiches etc. and also making sure any cuts or scrapes are covered with a waterproof dressing.
I was lucky because the disease didn't enter the second phase which can result in kidney or liver failure.
See here for more info http://www.leptospirosis.org/topic.php?t=30
Martyn
Hello all,
I thought I should post this as a bit of a warning to everyone.
I have just spent 11 days seriously ill in Broomfield Hospital Chelmsford with Weil's Disease (Leptospirosis).
I'm pretty sure I must have contracted it while barbel fishing on the River Wye around the Symonds Yat area.
As I'm sure most of you will know that the disease is carried and passed on in the urine of infected rats. This can enter the body via a cut or through the mouth, nose or eyes. The incubation period for the disease is anything from 3-28 days. I can only describe the symptoms as starting off like flu - aching all over and a severe headache, nausea then changing to almost malaria like symptoms with a 39c temperature and uncontrollable shivering, chest pain, sweating and a rash on one shin which ulcerated.
The worrying thing is because it's not that common the cases are often mis-diagnosed or not recorded. I was lucky because I was originally diagnosed with pnuemonia but due to my sister-in-laws quick thinking, adding up the symptoms and my visit to the Wye everything fell into place, although the doctors weren't convinced at first.
The treatment was then changed to huge doses of the strongest IV antibiotics which soon started to work on the illness.
Weil's is something we are all aware of but possibly don't take enough precautions against it. When I go fishing next I am going to take some sanitising wipes or a spray to use before eating sandwiches etc. and also making sure any cuts or scrapes are covered with a waterproof dressing.
I was lucky because the disease didn't enter the second phase which can result in kidney or liver failure.
See here for more info http://www.leptospirosis.org/topic.php?t=30
Martyn