Ebola

In recent years, the Ebola disease has become increasingly well known through the media. Not all facts have been proven yet. The Ebola virus is probably transmitted to humans via flying foxes and monkeys.

It takes between 2 and 21 days until the symptoms appear. At first, there is usually a sudden onset of high fever, muscle and headaches, as well as nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. In the later course, bleeding, circulatory collapse and an infestation of the kidneys occur. The disease is often fatal. Possible therapies and vaccinations are still being tested.

Amoebic dysentery

Amoebic dysentery, also known as amoebiasis, is transmitted by pathogens that enter the body via contaminated drinking water. In about 90% of the cases of transmission no symptoms occur. If the disease does break out, it can manifest itself in two ways.

There is either an infestation of the intestine with typical raspberry jelly-like stool and pain when defecating, or the formation of abscesses (an accumulation of pus), which occur mainly in the liver. The therapy is carried out with the administration of two drugs, metronidazole and paromomycin. A vaccination does not exist.

Typhoid fever

Typhoid fever is a tropical disease that occurs mainly in Africa, Southeast Asia and South America. It is transmitted by a certain type of salmonella and the symptoms appear after about 1-3 weeks. These include an initially slow rise in body temperature and constipation.

Later, fever, abdominal pain, pea-like bowel movements, a coloration of the tongue (typhoid tongue) and rashes on the abdominal skin occur. Antibiotics are used for treatment. When travelling to a risk area, vaccination against typhoid fever is recommended.

Elephantiasis

Elephantiasis, also known as Elephantiasis syndrome, is a tropical disease that can be transmitted by various pathogens. These include threadworms, but also the bacteria that can transmit leprosy. The clinical picture describes an excessive swelling of a body part, usually the legs or external genitals. The reason for this is a congestion of the lymph.It often occurs at a late stage of other diseases. There is no drug treatment for the disease, but depending on the severity of the swelling, lymphatic drainage or even surgical removal is available.