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Public warned of Leptospirosis as over 1000 people have been infected

BANGKOK, 31 July 2011 (NNT)-Permanent Secretary for Public Health MD. Paijit Warachit has revealed a new record high of people contracting Leptospirosis. The statistics has prompted health officials to inform people to avoid walking barefooted in the muddy fields.

According to Dr. Paijit, the number of patients has reached 1,043 patients during the first 7 months this year and so far16 of them have died. Leptospirosis is a common disease found during the rainy season. A human can contract the disease by being exposed to infected water from puddles, ponds and animal urine.

The symptoms include nausea, red eyes, constipation and high fever. People are told not to wade into the water with their bare feet especially if there are wounds. Among all regions in Thailand, the Northeast has reported the highest number of patients at 568, followed by the South, the North and the Central region.

Over 50% of the patients are farmers. The rest include students, soldiers, police and monks. However, Dr. Paijit said children were among those at risks because of their nature. They could contract the disease in the playground or when they walked into the puddle containing bacteria.

He added that adults would normally not detect anything unusual and would assume their children had a normal flu. Parents are encouraged to take their children to see a doctor if they are unsure about the symptoms.

-- NNT 2011-07-31