By Scott Weese on Posted in Other animals,Other diseasesYes, piranha bite response is a pretty niche topic. Nevertheless, it’s interesting (at least to me). A recent paper in Pediatric Emergency Care (Berkowitz and Goldsmith. An unexpected fish bite. 2017) covers this topic. It starts off this way: A 22-month-old boy presented to the pediatric emergency department with a missing right fourth distal phalanx… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in ReptilesAs reported on barfblog.com (with, as ever, an entertaining title: You see a cute turtle, I see a bug factory: Infant botulism from C. butyricum) a recent paper in the journal Epidemiology and Infection (Shelley et al. 2015) reports an unusual turtle-associated disease. When we think about turtles and infections (especially infections of young kids),… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Other animalsThe Tennessee Aquarium in Chattanooga is being sued for $2.4 million by the parents of a child who allegedly acquired an infection after petting stingrays and sharks. The news report contains very little information, but the reference to "fish-handler’s bacteria" means the infection was presumably caused by the bacterium Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae. This bacterium can be… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Other animalsA California teen has been battling a chronic and severe infection acquired from a fish tank. Five years ago, Hannele Cox cut her hand when she pulled it out of an aquarium. It sounds like it was a pretty minor scratch, but it doesn’t take much to cause an infection under the right circumstances. A… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Other animalsThe US CDC is investigating a large, long-lasting and widely dispersed outbreak of salmonellosis that has been linked to contact with pet frogs, such as African dwarf frogs (see image). Between April 1, 2009 and April 5, 2011, 217 infections were identified in people in 41 states. A strain of Salmonella Typhimurium has been implicated.… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in ReptilesA UK hairdresser is recovering from necrotizing fasciitis (flesh-eating disease) that was linked to his pet turtle. The problem started when he cut his finger while cleaning out the turtle’s tank. An infection developed, which isn’t too surprising since a turtle terrarium is full of a variety of bacteria. However, instead of a mild, local infection,… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Other animalsFish are very popular pets. It has been estimated that freshwater fish are owned by over 14 million people in the US, and saltwater fish are owned by approximately 800 000 people. Fish can be interesting, low maintenance pets, and the risks of disease transmission to people are low. However, low does not mean zero,… Continue Reading
