This article focuses on common bacterial infections in pregnancy and describes the manifestations of these infections and the therapies used to treat them.
Bacterial infections can affect pregnant women from implantation of the fertilized ovum through the time of delivery and peripartum period. They may also affect the fetus and newborn. Many women with these infections are asymptomatic, necessitating both a high degree of clinical awareness and adequate screening.
Grop B Streptococcus
Group B Streptococcus (GBS) is the most common cause of life-threatening infections in newborns; thus, GBS is the primary focus of any discussion about infections and pregnancy. Infections caused by GBS affect both mother and child. Since the emergence of this pathogen in the 1970s, the increased use of intrapartum prophylaxis has decreased the infection rate by 70%.
Etiology
Streptococcus agalactiae, or GBS, is a facultative, beta-hemolytic, fastidious, gram-positive coccus. GBS can be found as part of normal vaginal, rectal, and oral flora. The virulence of the organism depends largely on the polysaccharide capsule.
Transmission
Twenty to 25% of pregnant women are asymptomatic carriers of vaginal or rectal GBS. Intrapartum transmission occurs via ascending spread or at the time of delivery.
Clinical spectrum
Because only 0.5-1% of mothers who carry GBS develop signs and symptoms of disease, clinical diagnosis of GBS infection can be problematic.
In pregnant women, GBS is a cause of cystitis, amnionitis, endometritis, and stillbirth. Occasionally, GBS has caused endocarditis and meningitis in pregnant women, while, in postpartum women, GBS has been identified as a cause of urinary tract infections (UTIs) and pelvic abscesses. Read more »
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Posted in medicalmatrix | February 13, 2010 | 
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Background
Typhus refers to a group of infectious diseases that are caused by rickettsial organisms and that result in an acute febrile illness. Arthropod vectors transmit the etiologic agents to humans. The principle diseases of this group are epidemic or louse-borne typhus and its recrudescent form known as Brill-Zinsser disease, murine typhus, and scrub typhus. (For more information on pediatric scrub typhus, see the eMedicine article Scrub Typhus in the Pediatric: General Medicine volume.)
Pathophysiology
Epidemic typhus is the prototypical infection of the typhus group of diseases, and the pathophysiology of this illness is representative of the entire category. The arthropod vector of epidemic typhus is the body louse (Pediculus corporis). This is the only vector of the typhus group in which humans are the usual host. Rickettsia prowazekii, which is the etiologic agent of typhus, lives in the alimentary tract of the louse. A Rickettsia- harboring louse bites a human to engage in a blood meal and causes a pruritic reaction on the host’s skin. The louse defecates as it eats; when the host scratches the site, the lice are crushed, and the Rickettsia- laden excrement is inoculated into the bite wound. The Rickettsia travel to the bloodstream and rickettsemia develops.
Rickettsia parasitize the endothelial cells of the small venous, arterial, and capillary vessels. The organisms proliferate and cause endothelial cellular enlargement with resultant multiorgan vasculitis. This process may cause thrombosis, and the deposition of leukocytes, macrophages, and platelets may result in small nodules. Thrombosis of supplying blood vessels may cause gangrene of the distal portions of the extremities, nose, ear lobes, and genitalia. This vasculitic process may also result in loss of intravascular colloid with subsequent hypovolemia and decreased tissue perfusion and, possibly, organ failure. Loss of electrolytes is common.
Some people with a history of typhus may develop a recrudescent type of typhus known as Brill-Zinsser disease. After a patient with typhus is treated with antibiotics and the disease appears to be cured, Rickettsia may linger in the body tissues. Months, years, or even decades after treatment, organisms may reemerge and cause a recurrence of typhus. How the Rickettsia organisms linger silently in a person and by what mechanism recrudescence is mediated are unknown. The presentation of Brill-Zinsser disease is less severe than epidemic typhus, and the associated mortality rate is much lower. Risk factors that may predispose to recrudescent typhus include improper or incomplete antibiotic therapy and malnutrition.
Murine typhus and scrub typhus share the same pathophysiology as epidemic typhus, although they are somewhat milder. The incubation period is approximately 12 days for the typhus group. Prior infection with Rickettsia typhi provides subsequent and long-lasting immunity to reinfection. Read more »
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It’s an unfortunate fact of life that, according to the CDC, more than 33% of people ages 65 and older are involved in accidents and falls at home each Year. Now, people suffering from medical conditions or physical problems need to live a normal life. And a Medical Alarm is among the things that can help them do that.
Modern medical technology has improved patients’ lives to an extent, unimaginable only a few decades ago. Medical Alarm devices and systems are now capable of making suffering persons feel secure in their own homes and their relatives more confident, because if anything happens the medical alarm will work, making rescue and treatment immediate. And medical doctors know their patients are much safer with a medical alarm.
There are many medical alarm companies with many different types of emergency medical equipment, so do your homework. If you’re thinking about getting a medical alarm for you or someone you care about, be sure to always ask the following questions:
- Can I speak and listen to the operator through the pendant?
- What happens if I hit the button when I am outside? Can I speak to the operator from outside my home?
- If I am showering or bathing, can I use my pendant/medical alert bracelet? If the door is closed, will I be heard?
- Do the call center operators have EMT (emergency medical technician) training?
- Will the call center operators stay on the line with me for as long as I need them?
It’s your choice to choose your own responder list, and whom you wish to call first in the event of an emergency.
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Posted in medicalmatrix | February 15, 2009 | Comments (0)
The light illness could be boomerang for the person itself. Sometime we do not realize that an a little pain could disturb our activity. So, we have to prevent it if we realize the symptoms. Have you ever got migraine headaches? A migraine headache is not a common headache. It has different symptoms than the common headaches.
What are the migraine symptoms? Actually, there are several symptoms that is common appear to the migraine victims. The aura is the warning sign of the migraine. What is aura? Aura is such kind a sign that the migraine will be happened. It can be blind spots, impaired vision, and a temporary loss vision. So, if you have ever experienced this way of the symptoms, now you can conclude it as a symptoms of migraine headache.
So, if you got a migraine, you can try to get the home remedy as well. Why? It is because the home remedy will affect more to your health. So, you can try to apply ice to your head. Then take a rest by sleeping within an hour. This will make you feel better. In addition, migraine treatment is also can be got by taking a tablet that you got from the doctor’s prescription.
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Posted in medicalmatrix | October 18, 2006 | Comments (0)