All articles tagged with #fatal case
Researchers confirmed the first known death caused by alpha gal allergy, a meat allergy triggered by Lone Star tick bites, after a man died hours after eating beef. The case highlights the severity of the allergy, which can cause life-threatening reactions, and emphasizes the increasing risk due to rising tick populations.
An Australian man in his 50s died after being infected with the rare and deadly Australian bat lyssavirus, transmitted through a bat bite, highlighting the risks of handling bats and the absence of effective treatment for the virus.
Alaska reports its first fatal case of Alaskapox, a novel orthopox virus, in a man with an underlying health condition living on the Kenai Peninsula. This marks the state's seventh Alaskapox case and the first located outside of the Fairbanks area. The man's immunocompromised status likely contributed to the severity of the disease, which was linked to a stray cat that frequently scratched him. The case highlights the need for increased awareness among clinicians and ongoing testing of small mammals to gauge the prevalence of Alaskapox.
The first known fatal case of Alaskapox has been reported in an immunocompromised man on the Kenai Peninsula, marking a significant development as previous cases had only resulted in mild infections. The virus, belonging to the same genus as smallpox and monkeypox, was first identified in Alaska in 2015 and is primarily found in small mammals. The man's death has prompted state health officials to raise awareness among medical providers and the public, as the virus may be more widespread in Alaska's rodents and small animals than previously thought. The cause of the fatal case remains unclear, but health officials recommend practicing good hygiene around wildlife and pets that may come in contact with infected animals.
An 84-year-old man from Minnesota became the first reported fatality due to rabies in the United States despite receiving appropriate post-exposure prophylaxis. The man woke up with a rabid bat biting his right hand and was administered appropriate care, which included rabies post-exposure prophylaxis. However, about five months after the exposure, the patient started to have severe pain on the right side of his face, with excessive right eye tearing. His symptoms progressed to facial numbness, trouble swallowing, and right arm numbness associated with nausea and vomiting. The man was hospitalized about a week after first developing symptoms when he complained of worsening facial pain and difficulty swallowing. He subsequently died 15 days after developing symptoms of rabies. The authors concluded that the patient had a fatal outcome because his immune system could not mount a protective antibody response after receiving vaccine prophylaxis to prevent rabies, presumably because of undiagnosed MGUS that suppressed his immune system.