TETANUS

Tetanus is a bacterial infection caused by the microbe Clostridium Tetani. Clostridium Tetani releases a neurotoxin called tetanospasmin which causes the scheletal muscle fibers in the human body to contract uncontrollably. The Tetanus bacteria is most often introduced to the body via a cut or puncture wound, but there are also cases of neonatal tetanus, caused by nonsterile removal of the umbilicus from a non-immune infant. In modernized countries, infants are typically born with temporary immunity to tetanus because mothers who are up to date on their tetanus vaccines will automatically pass their immunity to their offspring.

Everyone is familiar with the idea that if you step on a rusty nail, you should get a tetanus shot, but tetanus infections have little to do with rust. Rather, any puncture or cut from a non-sterile object (such as a dirty needle) or an animal bite or scratch could introduce tetanus if the bacteria is present. Rust might increase the likelihood that the bacteria is present on the object because it forms a rough surface to which the bacteria can easily stick.

Symptoms of Tetanus usually begin within 3-21 days. Like Rabies, the disease takes longer to manifest if the point of introduction is located far away from the Central Nervous System. The first symptoms of General Tetanus include tightness in the jaw (lockjaw) and facial spasms, which cause a characteristic grin called risus sardonicus. These symptoms progress into neck stiffness, difficulty swallowing and pectoral and calf rigidity. Victims also experience fevers, sweating, high blood pressure and rapid heart rate. People in the throws of full blown tetanus will have instense full-body spasms refered to as Opisthotonus, in which the body involuntarily forms an arch.

The most effective way to avoid Tetanus is through vaccination, and the first form of treatment for a suspected infection is prophylactic vaccination. However, once the disease is symptomatic, treatment consists of life preserving measures such as assisted breathing, intravenous valium and high calorie tube feeding.

Mortality from tetanus is currently 11%.

Because of it's limited mortality but horrible manifestations I give Tetanus a
4 on my "lethality scale" (1-10)
and a 6 on my "disturbing scale" (1-10)

ACUTE MYELOID LEUKEMIA

Acute Myeloid Leukemia is a rapidly progressing cancer of the myeloid line of white blood cells. In AML, the myeloid white blood cells mutate and begin to rapidly replicate themselves. These harmful versions of the myeloid cells take residence in the bone marrow preventing healthy blood cells from being created. Since the body needs healthy red and white blood cells to fight infection and process oxygen, the destruction of these cells leads to heart damage, hypoxia and infection. Though there is chemotherapy treatment for Acute Myeloid Leukemia, the survival rate is extremely low, with estimates of survival around the 20% mark.

The disease has no definitive cause, though there are a number of factors which can make occurance of the illness more likely. These include:

• Down Syndrome


• Preleukemic Blood Disorders


• Exposure to Chemotherapy


• Exposure to Radiation

One of the major issues with Myeloid Leukemia is that its symptoms are often subtle. Many victims feel run-down or have flu-like symptoms. Others may experience unusual bruising or swelling of the gums. However, this particular type of Leukemia is so rapid (with death occuring within weeks to months of onset without treatment) that the disease has often gotten to an advanced stage before it is noticed. People even die of the illness before being diagnosed.

This type of cancer is, thankfully, extremely rare. Only 1.2% of cancer deaths in the US are from Myeloid Leukemia.

Due to the aggressive and deadly nature of this sick, I rate it a:

8 on my "lethality scale" (1-10)

and a 7 on my "disturbing scale" (1-10)

YELLOW FEVER

Yellow Fever is an acute RNA viral infection caused by the virus Flaviviridae. It is indigenous to equatorial regions of Africa and South America where mosquitos are the most common vector of transmition. Though there is an effective vaccine against Yellow Fever, many people in the 3rd world countries affected by the illness do not have access to modern health care and, thus, remain succeptible to infection.

The CDC has stated that severe cases of Yellow Fever have a mortality rate of between 15-50%, while the World Health Organization has stated that 15% of those infected with Yellow Fever, enter a "toxic phase" and that 50% of those who enter toxicity die.

The symptoms of Yellow Fever begin 3 to 5 days after the pathogen has entered the body. Symptoms begin suddenly with headache and fever. Sometimes those are the only symptoms that appear, and the disease goes into latency without causing any damage.

About 15% of the infected progress to the toxic phase which includes fever, chills, vomiting, hemoraging, jaundice (from which the disease gets its name) and slow heartbeat. After 3 days in the toxic phase, the disease enters a brief period of remission in which the patient feels a bit better. However, the disease returns with a vengeance in its final stage causing characteristic black vomiting as the victim internally hemorages.

Due to its high mortality and painful symtoms this sick gets a
7 on my "lethality scale"
and a 6 on my "disturbing scale"

RABIES

Rabies, from the Latin word "rabies" meaning "madness", is a viral disease transferred from animal to animal through saliva and blood. The virus has such brutal and specific neurological effects that it has been marked throughout history, with its first mention over 3,000 years ago.

The virus typically enters the body through a skin puncture and wends its way to the central nervous system where it rapidly causes the brain to swell. Depending on the location of viral entry the pathogen can take months or even years to reach the CNS.

The virus travels through the blood brain barrier where it is protected from the body's disease fighting cells. This relative safety allows it to mass produce itself for concentrated release in the host's saliva and tears. In fact, one of the main symptoms of rabies infection is a marked increase in saliva and tear production as the virus hijacks the saliva and tear ducts to ready itself for the leap to another victim.

The dementia and mood swings caused by the illness are spectacular. Victims often become aggressive and violent as the virus attacks their brains. A combination of saliva production and other neurological changes cause the tell-tale symptom of hydrophobia, in which patients become terrified or aggressive when presented with water, and even though they are dying of thirst, cannot bring themselves to drink. It is the combination of this lack of hydration and over-production of saliva which causes the disease's trademark "foaming at the mouth."

Death from respiratory arrest occurs between 2-10 days after the first "flu-like" symptoms appear.

Once the virus has begun causing physical symptoms in the victim there is no standard treatment protocol, and the patient is expected to die. There have only been 6 reported cases in medical history of survival once Rabies had become symptomatic. One of these survivors, Jeanna Giese, was a WI teenager, who was spared from death in 2005 when doctors induced a coma in tandem with pharmaceutical intervention. This treatment has been replicated in subsequent cases without success.

Prophylactic Vaccination, however, has an almost 100% success rate at preventing the onset of symptoms. If a victim recognizes that they may have come in contact with the virus and seeks medical help before the virus has reached the CNS, it is extremely unlikely that they will ever get the full-blown disease.

This sick can be easily thwarted if caught early, but is truly one of the most horrific diseases if allowed to progress to its symptomatic stage. So, I give this sick a:
6 on my "lethality scale" (1-10)
and a 6 on my "disturbing scale" (1-10)

INFLUENZA

Contrary to colloquial usage, the term "Influenza" or "The Flu" does not refer to every illness resulting in coughing, sneezing, vomiting or fever. Rather, "Flu" is an illness caused by a very specific family of RNA viruses called Orthomyxoviridae, which mutate on a, typically, yearly cycle to frustrate our bodies attempts at immunity. It is the ubiquity and prevalence of Influenza in all cultures and demographics that has caused us to generalize many unrelated illnesses under the heading of "Flu."

Influenza kill hundreds of thousands of people each year, typically the very old and the very young, as it makes it's annual sweep across the globe. In an average year, 200,000 Americans are hospitalized because of Influenza.

Every year, the flu virus returns to its animal reservoirs (primarily pigs and birds) and undergoes various mutations. These mutations generate a unique yearly Influenza strain. Strains vary in lethality, contagion and severity from year to year. Scientists are constantly monitoring emerging strains in an effort to develop each year's vaccine. However, they are never 100% certain which strain will emerge.

When a person receives their yealry Flu shot, they are taking a gamble. It is possible that the devised vaccine will prevent the strain of Flu that comes around, but it is also possible that a different strain of Flu will unexpectedly emerge which is not affected by the vaccine leaving people unknowingly unprotected from infection.

The major symptomatic differences between cold and flu are as follows:

Flu vs. Colds: A Guide to Symptoms
Questions	Flu	Cold
Was your onset of illness …	sudden?	slow?
Do you have a …	high fever?	no (or mild) fever?
Is your exhaustion level …	severe?	mild?
Is your head …	achy?	headache-free?
Is your appetite …	decreased?	normal?
Are your muscles …	achy?	fine?
Do you have …	chills?	no chills?

Influenza is so common that we often forget about the huge toll it takes each year in human life and health care resources. It has historically proven to be one of the worst scourges of human kind. With that in mind I rate this sick

a 2 on my "lethality scale" (1-10)
and a 2 on my "disturbing scale" (1-10)

KURU

Kuru (Mad Human Disease) is a PrP (prion) related disease (see Fatal Familial Insomnia) that causes neurological effects such as truncal ataxia, headaches and uncontrolled tremors ultimately leading to death. Kuru is transmissible between humans via the consumption of an infected person's flesh. The brain meat, in particular, is highly infectious because the prions exist there in a higher concentration.

Kuru was endemic to the Fore tribe of Papua New Guinea. Fore tribe members practiced ritual canibalism as part of burial ceremonies. The men of the tribes ate the best cuts of meat while the women and children were left to consume the organs and brain. It is thought that this difference in consumption practices caused the increased prevalance of Kuru seen in the women and children of the Fore tribe.

Scientists conjecture that the outbreak of Kuru which plagued the Fore tribe began when they consumed someone who had been suffering from Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (a similar prion-based illness.)

In Kuru, death occurs within 18 months of the onset of symptoms. However, like its cousins Mad Cow Disease and FFI, the disease can be latent for up to 40 years from the time of contraction.

Because this sick is fatal and is passed through canibalism, I give this sick a
7 on my "lethality scale" (1-10)
and a 7 on my "disturbing scale" (1-10)