In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, another man in a bathroom in the Baltic sea has been infected with Vibrios. Thus, the number of infections this year to six, said Heiko Will, Director of the state office for health and social Affairs in Rostock. Last week an elderly woman had died of such an infection.
Vibrios are bacteria of which some species in humans, diseases can cause. The most famous is the causative agent of Cholera is. In Germany the bacterium V. vulnificus that causes wound infections, however, is.
Vibrios detected in all the coastal areas
In the current case, an elderly woman is concerned, which belongs to the risk group of immunocompromised people. Where the woman is infected, is not known. In principle, since 1994, is clear that Vibrio occurrence in the Baltic sea. They have been demonstrated since then in all the coastal areas and are a natural part of saline waters.
In Schleswig-Holstein no disease previously known cases, said a spokesman for the Ministry of social Affairs. In Parts of these bacteria also live in the North sea, but mainly in regions, where the salt content is through the fresh water supply is low.
Risk is extremely low
At low temperatures, the Vibrios in the sea floor life. A rise in temperature of the water to more than 20 degrees favors the growth and spread of bacteria. To prevent its spread, however, is hardly possible.
Symptoms of infection chills, diarrhea, fever, and blistering skin rash are. A quick treatment with antibiotics can mitigate the progression of the disease considerably.
In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, three more people by the Vibrios have died in the past year, infections. In the face of tens of millions of bathers, the risk of disease is extremely low. Only in exceptional cases, a risk for immunocompromised, the elderly or patients with liver disease, or HIV. For healthy people, the bacteria are harmless. (Read more about it here.)