Hands Up for Dog Lovers: (A Cautionary Case of Capnocytophaga Canimorsus Infection)
If you have dogs, put your hands up!! Well, my hands are already up and I am sure that a lot of you would have your hands up unless for people who do not like our canine friends, or those who do not have it as a result of religious or cultural beliefs but at the end of it, our canine friends are very lovely, and then some people enjoy that lick from them as it makes their bond more closer but this isn't the same in the case I will be bringing today.
I will be looking at the case of Marie Trainer who just arrived from Punta Cana on a vacation, and resumed work. She called out from work on Friday, May 10th, 2019 with symptoms of backache and nausea. Everyone around her thought the symptoms were flu like symptoms, so they treated it like flu. Even Matt Trainer confessed to this, but by midnight, between 2 and 3 AM, her temperature rose exceedingly, and then dropped tremendously, they decided to visit a local alliance community hospital emergency room with the intention of treating a flu but at the hospital, her symptoms worsen, and she was transferred to the Hospital's medical intensive care unit.
She was complaining of excruciating pain in her hands and feet and then on the 12th of May, which was a Sunday, she couldn't breath on her own again and was placed on life support and was placed in a medically induced coma. Her family was confused, even her step daughter who was a nurse in the hospital said that they didn't know what it was but they were certain it was an infection.
What the medical team could tell the family was that whatever it might be, it had caused the small vessels in her limbs to suffer gangrene leading to blood clot in the region leading to the inability of blood to flow to the limbs. Her skin and flesh were dead and she had to be taken to the theater so as to save her life. Her legs and hands were amputated, and blood clot were removed from her limbs. According to doctor Ajay Seth, he had removed about 40 to 50 blood clot by the time they were 7 hours into the surgery.
On the 18th of the same month, she woke up from the coma to realize that her hands and legs were amputated. Dr Margaret Kobe confirmed that the cause of the near death experience was difficult to identify which means that they found what caused the near death event that led to the loss of her limbs but it was difficult to identify.
Blood culture helped doctors identify that it was caused by a bacteria known as Capnocytophaga canimorsus. Blood thinners were given to her as well as antibiotics to help fight the bacteria and prevent blood thinner. Till date, Marie has undergone 6 surgeries to ensure her life is safe and you would wonder how serious the bacteria is.
Capnocytophaga canimorsus is a normal microbial flora in the mouth of cats and dogs and although rare, the bacteria can be transferred to humans, and I say in rare cases because it is truly rare. In the case of Marie, her german shepherd licked an already open wound in her finger and her case was one of those rare cases.
While the bond between humans and dogs is cherished, it's essential to be aware of potential health risks, however rare they may be. Vigilance, prompt medical attention, and understanding the risks associated with bacterial infections from pets can help prevent similar tragedies in the future.
Read More
https://edition.cnn.com/2019/08/02/health/amputation-dog-lick-ohio-woman/index.html
https://www.gofundme.com/f/1oy5dl50c0
https://www.cdc.gov/capnocytophaga/treatment/index.html
https://www.foxnews.com/health/ohio-legs-arms-amputated-dog-lick-infection
https://fox8.com/news/love-helps-on-road-to-recovery-for-stark-county-woman-who-lost-limbs-to-infection-caused-by-dog-saliva/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/27837588/
https://www.cdc.gov/capnocytophaga/index.html
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8905316/
Image Reference
Image 1 || Flickr || PP12 SAMAR,Philippines - ICU Care
Image 2 || Flickr || Finger Amputation
Image 3 || Wikimedia Commons ||n
I am getting scared right now owning a dog actually. That is really a terrible case for her quite so unfortunate for her. Every dog pet owner should certainly read this post to be careful of that bacteria and how they relate with their dog actually
You shouldn't be scared of owning a dog. It isn't a common infection like I reiterated in the post, also remember that the woman got infected because she had a cut on her hand. Having disease that affect humans from dogs isn't something that we come by everyday and that is why these case studies are documented.
Why does it look like our furry neighbors come with a lot of transferred infections and disease like that scary Rabies which makes a person become agitated, Cat Scratch Disease caused by * Bartonella henselae*, Toxoplasmosis caused by Toxoplasma gondii which affects the neurological system of a person and so on.
I must say that the love for these pets of ours is genuine because even with the long list of possible but rare infections and diseases, we still have them around.
Back to the Marie, I do not think her dogs had any fault since the bacterium is a normal floral of the dog's mouth, so it was only being affectionate but it got its housemates to infect its owner mistakenly from a cut.
Haha.. They seem to be a handful if we will be truthful to ourselves. I must say that it is genuine love for real but then, i really need to read on cases where humans infected animals or why do we always have to be at the receiving end of the infection or disease transmission spectrum.
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