03. 2011年6月15日 12:37:11: EGaQ73B5yp
津波被災地でハエが大発生しているのに、実効のある対策が何ら打たれて いないとすると、二次災害として感染症の爆発的蔓延が起きるのではないか、 と本当に心配です。日本では報道されていませんが、米国で、今年も相次いで起きている 竜巻の被災地では、接合菌症(zygomycosis)という、カビによる深刻な 感染症の感染爆発が被災民を襲っています。 既存の感染症媒介生物が大量発生しているのなら、DDTなどの強力な 殺虫剤を使って、とりあえずの対策を打つしかないのかも知れません。 終戦直後は、占領軍のイニシアチヴでそれを実行したおかげで、 とりあえずチフスなどの(戦災地にありがちな)感染症を抑え込めたのかも 知れません。(日本の終戦直後の感染症対策でもっとも重要だったのは DDT散布よりも、国民の栄養状態と衛生状態の改善であった、とは 思うのですが……。)
DDTは難分解性で、健康にも長期的には有害ですが、発展途上国では 感染症蔓延よりもマシだという判断で、いまでも使われています。 いま現在の日本は、まともな災害対策が打てず、その点ではすでに最劣悪の 低開発国なのですから、DDTなどの使用もやむを得ないのかも しれません。とにかく、住民の考えが最優先ですから、緊急に住民公聴会を 開いて意見を聞き、感染症の大爆発の危険性を知らせたうえで、 とりあえずどうするかを、真剣に考えてもらうしかないのだと思います。 今回の津波震災において、いま一番重要なのは、被災民の免疫力を 維持強化するために栄養を良くして衛生的な環境に住ませること。 それが不十分だと、カビその他、普段なら感染しない微生物やウイルスにも 日和見感染して、それで死ぬ患者も爆発的に増える恐れがあります。 (ハエの媒介で猛毒の致死性大腸菌の感染爆発でも起きたら、医療機関は 手が回らないし、ただの下痢では済まないわけです。病原性大腸菌は 腎不全なども起こしますから、一度の感染で一生ものの障害を抱える 可能性もあります。 感染症をナメちゃいけません。 ハエ大発生のなかで 生活している被災者自身と、行政は、それがわかているのでしょうか? 二次災害の危険性をナメちゃいけない!) ご参考までに、アメリカの竜巻被災地でいま深刻な問題になっている、 「zygomycosis(接合菌症)」の感染爆発について、言及した英文記事を下記にひとつ 紹介しておきます。そのなかに出てくる「zygomycosis」がどういうものか、wikipedia の解説がこれ。 ↓ ------------------------------------------------------------ zygomycosis 接合菌症 http://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%8E%A5%E5%90%88%E8%8F%8C%E7%97%87 ------------------------------------------------------------ ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/06/09/us-joplin-infections-idUSTRE7587HW20110609 Rare infection strikes some in Joplin; death toll rises to 151 By Kevin Murphy KANSAS CITY, Mo | Thu Jun 9, 2011 7:59pm EDT KANSAS CITY, Mo (Reuters) - Health officials say flying debris from the tornado that tore through Joplin, Missouri, last month is to blame for an outbreak of a rare but serious -- and in some cases deadly -- fungal infection among some of the more than 900 people injured in the disaster. Soil or plant matter on debris that penetrated the skin of some of the people who survived the twister is believed to have caused them to contract an infection called zygomycosis, said Uwe Schmidt, an infectious diseases physician at Freeman Health System in Joplin. Schmidt said he knows of at least nine patients who have had the infection in the weeks since the disaster. Three or four of them died and he said zygomycosis was a factor, if not the actual cause. "It's definitely quite striking," Schmidt told Reuters. "To have so many cases of this is rather rare." He said he had previously only seen two cases of zygomycosis in his career. The May 22 tornado cut a six-mile swath through Joplin, killing 151 people while destroying some 6,000 homes and many other buildings. Several people have been treated for zygomycosis in neighboring Greene County, said Kendra Williams, administrator of community health and epidemiology for the Springfield-Greene County Health Department. She was unable to release information on whether any of the patients died. "It's just an unfortunate side effect of the tornado," Williams said. "You deal with the sadness and emotions from the tornado itself and then you find there are problems associated with this." Symptoms of pain, swelling and skin discoloration typically showed up about five to 10 days after the tornado, Williams said. But depending on a person's age, health and wounds suffered, some cases could still surface, Schmidt said. The infection can spread rapidly and invades the blood supply, he said. Treatment is with intravenous anti-fungal mediation and removal of damaged skin tissue, Schmidt said. Mold can be seen in some of the wounds, he said. Public health departments in the Joplin region have notified doctors and hospitals to be aware of the possible infection when treating patients injured in the tornado, Williams said. The official death toll from the Joplin tornado rose by 10 on Thursday from the previously reported number of 141, according to Jasper County Coronor Rob Chappel. Eight of the new deaths were from injuries suffered in the tornado and one was from a fungal infection, though Chappel said he was not told if it was zygomycosis. Authorities have also added to the list of the dead a police officer who died of lightning-strike injuries the day after the tornado, Chappel said. The officer had previously been excluded from the count. (Editing by James B. Kelleher and Jerry Norton) ーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーーー |