Question

Write a short note on typhoid.

Answer 1

Salmonella typhi is the agent of typhoid fever.

Signs and symptoms of typhoid are as follows:

1. Prolonged fever is as high as 1040 F.
2. General nausea, fatigue and headache.
3. Abdominal pain, constipation or diarrhoea.
4. Rose-coloured rash on the skin.
5. Whitecoat on tongue, cough.
6. Anorexia (loss of appetite).
7. vii. If not treated on time, the patient may experience breathlessness, irregular heartbeats and haemorrhage.

Modes of transmission of typhoid are as follows:

1. It is a food and water-borne disease.
2. Insects like houseflies and cockroaches feeding on faecal matter may transfer the bacteria to the food material.
3. Poor hygiene habits and poor sanitation conditions are responsible for the spread of typhoid.

Typhoid fever can be confirmed by the Widal Test. Antibiotics like Chloromycetin is a helpful treatment. Treatment of typhoid involves surgical removal of the gall bladder in severe cases.

The two vaccines for the prevention of typhoid are:

1. Live, oral Ty21a vaccine (sold as Vivotif Berna)
2. Injectable Typhoid polysaccharide vaccine (sold as Typhim Vi by Sanofi Pasteur and Typherix by GlaxoSmithKline).