Dogs can cause human blood, just lick it. Doctors warned after an elderly British woman became seriously ill.
After a rare infection from her Italian greyhound, she was in intensive care because of multiple organ failure.
It is generally believed that the bacteria that live inside the dog's teeth are passed on to her from the pets because she is often close to loving her and letting her lick her.
The case report of the English Medical Journal (BMJ Case Reports) on the Internet by British doctors details that the woman, who does not smoke and who rarely drinks, almost dies of sepsis after infection.
This occurs when attempts are made to combat infection by accelerating the use of the body ' s immune system.
It is known that sepsis can cause organ failure and death without rapid treatment.
After the woman began to be vague on the telephone and then failed to respond, a single relative made a warning.
The paramedics found her in a semi-stunned chair and took her to hospital.
Initially, her symptoms improved, but after four days she caused acute kidney failure and was allowed to enter intensive care.
Blood tests indicate that the canine bite of the carbon dioxide fibrosis (Capnocytophaga canimorsus carceria) is infected, a rare but severe source of sepsis, often found in the mouths of cats and dogs.
She recovered after two weeks of intensive care and antibiotics treatment and was released 30 days after admission to hospital.
The case of the woman was particularly unusual, as she was not bitten or scratched by her dog.
In this case report, the doctor said: “This is an interesting case because there are no scratches or bites; although there are reports of being licked with close affection”.
In the past 26 years, only 13 cases of sepsis have been reported in the United Kingdom as being related to canine bites.
Of course, 60 per cent of the deaths of one in four patients occurred in dog bites, while 24 per cent were other dog-related contacts, such as scratches.
This time it was an Italian dog, but the doctor believed that any dog would cause the disease.
Older people are at higher risk because their immune system may be poor and because they are more likely to have pets.
The transmission of diseases from pets is often not diagnosed. However, the author of the report warned doctors that care must be taken to transmit bacteria to animals that could cause sepsis, especially to older people.
They said: “The report emphasizes that the infection can occur without visible scratches or bites.”
“The report also reminds us that older people are at higher risk of infection. Perhaps because of age-related immunisation incapacitation and increased pet ownership.”
Although there are no official figures, sepsis is believed to have claimed more than 30,000 lives a year in the United Kingdom.
At the beginning of this year, the number of inpatients allowed to do so nationwide rose by 50 per cent in five years to almost 400 per day.
The rise in hospitalization is considered to be due to increased antibiotics resistance, age-old communities, and more patients who have placed them at risk for surgery.
It can affect patients of any age, but it is more likely to happen to young children, pregnant women, older people and those with potential illnesses.
The expert claims that the Government and the National Health Insurance Agency (NHS) have been too slow to draw public attention to this issue, despite well-documented reports of how children have died of disease.
In January, the discovery of septicaemia claimed William Mead ' s first-year-old life, after 111 counselling staff lost their lives. In March, however, a report indicated that a 9-year-old boy died when he was sent home by a physician with a `moder chest infection'.