Salmonella
Salmonella infection may cause typhoid or paratyphoid, depending on the bacterium responsible. They cause an illness described as enteric fever, which may not start for a period of two weeks after exposure. There is headache, raised temperature and abdominal pain, together with either constipation or, more commonly, diarrhoea and vomiting. There may be a rash of rose pink spots. There may be complications such as encephalopathy causing confusion, infection of bones (osteomyelitis) or conversion to a carrier state where the germ colonises the gall bladder and the patient becomes chronically infected. A number of different antibiotics have been used to treat salmonella infection, but resistance is emerging. There is a vaccination available which is effective for three years.
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