6 days ago
Warning over outbreak of killer ANTHRAX in holiday hotspot - 4 hospitalised and 1 dead
Thailand has reported its first fatality from deadly anthrax in 25 years, with four others infected with bacteria.
All of the sick individuals in the popular holiday destination are thought to have contracted the disease after contact with infected cattle or animal products.
Anthrax, a disease famed for its links to bioterrorism, is a life-threatening infection caused by the spores of the bacteria Bacillus anthracis.
If these spores enter cuts or scrapes, known as cutaneous anthrax, they can spread through the body and produce toxins, causing severe illness and death.
Four initial cases of cutaneous anthrax, three men and one woman in their mid-30s-to-late-50s, were reported in Thailand early in May.
One patient, a 53 year-old man according to local reports, later succumbed to complications caused by the bacterial infection.
Thai health officials said the man sought medical aid for a lesion on his hand that developed almost two weeks after slaughtering a cow.
His condition rapidly deteriorated as the lesion became darker— a telltale sign of the disease—with his lymph nodes swelling and he started to experience episodes of dizziness and convulsions.
He then died, just three days after initially seeking help at a local hospital.
A subsequent case, in addition to the four others, was then detected on May 28.
Three other patients, while needed to be hospitalised, have subsequently made a full recovery and been discharged from hospital.
Testing of samples taken from the patients, all from Mukdahan Province in the country's northeast which borders with the Lao People's Democratic Republic, confirmed they had all been infected with anthrax.
Other tests, carried out on the deceased patient's kitchen items and of meat taken from the cattle, also confirmed the presence of anthrax.
Officials, racing to track any more cases, identified 636 other people at risk of anthrax exposure either from working with the infected livestock or who had eaten meat from them.
While two more people fell ill during this time with diarrhoea and fever, testing for anthrax came back negative.
Thai officials have now implemented a decontamination clean of 23 households deemed to be at high risk of the infection.
They have also rolled out an animal vaccination programme in the local area in a bid to prevent any more cases.
The World Health Organisation said the risk of the outbreak spreading locally or internationally is low.
No travel advice regarding anthrax cases in Thailand has been issued by the British Government.
Anthrax, which isn't a contagious disease between people, is typically easily remedied if a patient is treated early, especially in countries like the UK.
A handful of anthrax cases are reported in Britain each year.
According to the latest NHS data three anthrax needed treatment in England in 2023-2024.
None of these were the cutaneous anthrax but instead linked to inhalation of anthrax spores or anthrax sepsis, where spores enter the blood stream directly, such as through a needle in drug use.
