Quick research:
Summer is peak season for Vibrio vulnificus, with 85 percent of cases occurring between May and October. Most infections occur along the Florida, Texas and Maryland coasts. Summer is peak season for Vibrio vulnificus, with 85 percent of cases occurring between May and October. Most infections occur along the Florida, Texas and Maryland coasts. The bacteria, Vibrio vulnificus, kill one in three people who become infected and thrives in warm, saltwater environments. In 2014, there were about 90 infections of Vibrio vulnificus in the U.S., including 35 deaths, according to the CDC. By comparison, between 3,300 and 49,000 Americans die every year from flu complications. The people who are most at risk of becoming infected with Vibrio vulnificus are those whose immune systems have been weakened or those who suffer from chronic liver disease. Swimming in saltwater with an open wound places the swimmer at risk of infection with Vibrio, but that shouldn’t keep beachgoers from enjoying themselves. Health experts recommend cleaning any open wounds after taking a dip in the ocean.
More common in Hawaii than V. vulnificus are the potentially fatal bacterial infections leptospirosis, staphylococcus aureus and group A streptococci, which can lead to necrotizing fasciitis, known as "flesh-eating" disease. Certain conditions, such as warm seawater or freshwater streams and ponds likely to be contaminated with animal urine, boost the chances of exposure. Many of these freshwater sources contain bacteria from the urine of feral pigs, goats and rodents infected with leptospirosis. Humans become infected by swallowing contaminated water or through the eyes or nose, or broken skin. In Hawai'i, there have been five deaths from Vibrio infections since 2001, four from V. vulnificus. People infected with leptospirosis may suffer mild or no symptoms at all, and death is rare, although it is believed cases are underreported because patients may not associate their illness with recent outdoor activity. There have been nine fatalities from leptospirosis contracted in Hawai'i since 1974. The two most recent deaths occurred in the past two years and involved visitors from the Mainland who died after returning home.
Hawaii incidents: [SIZE=-1]The 34-year-old mortgage broker fell or was pushed into the Ala Wai Harbor on March 31. He received outpatient medical care at The Queen's Medical Center, but the following day complained of pain in his legs. On April 2, he was taken by ambulance to Queen's, where he went into septic shock and was placed in a medically induced coma. His right leg was amputated the next day in an unsuccessful attempt to halt the spread of the infection.
[/SIZE] [SIZE=-1]When Johnson died April 6, his heart, liver and kidneys had shut down, his intestines had been eaten up by bacteria and his bowels were rupturing. His body had swollen to three times its normal size.
[/SIZE] [SIZE=-1]V. vulnificus is the same "bug" that killed a 72-year-old man on Feb. 26, 2001, two days after he'd gone swimming in a popular saltwater pool next to the ocean at Ahalanui Beach Park in Puna. The thermal pond is warmed by underground volcanic sources, reaching temperatures of up to 93 degrees.
[/SIZE] [SIZE=-1]Herbert Wiesenfeld, a retired psychoanalyst from Carmel, Calif., was suffering from psoriasis, a chronic skin condition, when he entered the water at Ahalanui. He emerged from the pond with legs bloodied from where his scabs had been nibbled off by the little fish that live in the warm water.
[/SIZE] [SIZE=-1]The next morning Wiesenfeld exhibited flu-like symptoms and his legs were swollen and red. As the day wore on he became disoriented and agitated. He was taken to Hilo Medical Center that night, and died the following day despite massive doses of antibiotics.
[/SIZE] [SIZE=-1]A 77-year-old man who swam at the pond in October 2002 also became seriously ill but recovered.
A thorough cleansing with soap and water is still the best protection against infections, doctors said. Wounds should be closely watched over the first 24 to 48 hours.If it's not healing and it's more swollen, red and painful, and there's a fever and flu-like symptoms, that's the giveaway.
[/SIZE]
