Puerto Rico faces rise of deadly bacteria

Puerto Rico has reported at least 76 cases of suspected and confirmed leptospirosis, including two deaths, in the month following Hurricane Maria, said Dr Carmen Deseda, the state epidemiologist for Puerto Rico.

Two deaths so far have been confirmed through laboratory testing and :several others” are pending test results, said Deseda. The 76 also include a patient with confirmed leptospirosis, who is currently being hospitalised.

The spiral shaped bacteria, which can be found in the urine of rodents and other animals, tends to spread following floods, through drinking water or the infection of open wounds, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO). In serious cases, infection can cause organ failure and even death.

The island typically sees between 63 and 95 per year, said Deseda. Health officials expected that there would be a rise following the hurricane.

“It’s neither an epidemic nor a confirmed outbreak”, said public affairs secretary Ramon Rosario Cortes at a news conference on Sunday.

“But obviously, we are making all the announcements as though it were a health emergency”, he added.

“The majority of the lepto cases is a mild, sub-clinical disease, with no complications”, said Deseda. “But one out of 10 people who have leptospirosis develop severe illness”.

In the first stage, symptoms vary widely from fever and headache to red eyes and rashes. Some may not even have symptoms at this stage. A small amount, however, will develop dire complications, including meningitis, kidney and liver damage, bleeding in the lungs and even death.

"The death rate in patients who develop severe infection is between 5 and 15 percent", said Dr M Rizwan Sohail, a professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases.

Doctors are required to report any potential cases to health authorities, said Deseda. Those cases must then be tested to confirm the bacteria, as symptoms may be difficult to identify and confirm. Health officials may then look for clusters or patterns and determine whether or not there is an outbreak.

Tests on suspected cases were sent to the US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, said Deseda, with the turn around time being around five days.

Doctors in Puerto Rico have expressed concerns regarding burgeoning health crises, amid hospitals that are overwhelmed and undersupplied. Influenza is another concern.

A couple bathes in the Gurabo River in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria in Las Piedras, Puerto Rico, Monday, 2 October 2017. (Photo: Carlos Giusti/AP)

Dr Raul Hernandez, an internist in San Juan, said that people were drinking water from whatever sources they could find, such as creeks and rivers. If that water contained urine from an infected rodent, that person could be at risk, said Hernandez.

Deseda went on to warn the public against walking barefoot, drinking or swimming in potentially contaminated waters.

“These diseases are everywhere, but there’s a way to prevent them”, she said.