The Department of Disease Control (DDC) confirmed on Thursday 1ᵉʳ May a death linked to anthrax in northeast Thailand.
Death would be linked to the consumption and distribution of beef during a religious festival in Mukdahan, in total, 247 people are currently monitored and are under treatment.
Dr. Phanumat Yannawetsakun, director general of the DDC, announced Thursday that a person died of coal disease.
The deceased was a 53 -year -old building who suffered from diabetes.
According to Phanumat, the patient developed a right hand lesion on April 24 and was hospitalized on April 27.
His symptoms have worsened, with a lesion which has become black, swelling of the lymph nodes under the right armpit, fainting and convulsions before he died during his treatment.
Doctors suspected Anthrax and sent samples to the laboratories of the Department of Medical Sciences and the Bamrasnaradura Institute.
The tests confirmed the infection by Bacillus anthracis.
The first investigations suggested that the patient was exposed after the slaughter of a cow during a religious ceremony.
The meat was then distributed and consumed in the village.
A joint team -fighting team, composed of the DDC, the Ubon Ratchathani Regional Bureau 10, the Provincial Health Bureau and the Breeding Development Department, investigated the incident and identified 247 people at risk:
28 having participated in the slaughter and 219 having consumed raw meat.
High -risk people have received antibiotics and measures to combat disease are underway.
What is coal disease?
Photomicrography of the bacteria bacillus anthracis obtained by coloring of Gram. Photo: Phil
Carbon disease, also called a coal fever, is an acute infectious disease caused by the bacteria Bacillus anthracis.
It is an anthropozoonosis, that is to say common to animals and humans.
Very rare in humans, it is most often observed in herbivorous animals such as cattle, buffaloes, goats and sheep.
It can be transmitted to humans by direct contact, by the consumption of raw or insufficiently cooked meat, or by exposure to contaminated skins or wool.
Symptoms generally appear within 1 to 5 days and may include fever, nausea, vomiting, severe abdominal pain, black ulcers and breathing difficulties.
Without treatment, the mortality rate can reach 80 %.
According to the epidemiology office, the last cases of anthrax reported in Thailand date back to 2000 (15 cases with phichit and phitsanulok, without death) and to 2017 (2 cases at Mae Sot following the handling of a goat carcass from Burma).
In 2024, Laos reported 129 cases and a death; In May 2023, Vietnam recorded three epidemics, with 13 cases and 132 contacts linked to the consumption of beef and buffalo.
See: Thailand alert while the anthrax epidemic in Laos is amplified
Anthrax prevention advice
- Avoid contact with cattle, buffaloes, goats and sheep.
- Wash your hands and clean yourself carefully after all contact with animals.
- Consume only certified cooked meat without danger.
- Immediately report any abnormal animal death to the authorities responsible for breeding.
- Consult a doctor in case of unusual symptoms.
For more information, call the DDC hotline at 1422.
See also:
koi pla: the deadliest dish in Thailand
Gold researchers in Burma poison the rivers of Thailand
Arsenic pollution in Thailand: tourists flee the beach of Chiang Rai
Warning against pork in Thailand after 12 deaths
Alert on contaminated grapes in Thailand
Source : The Nation Thaïland
