Symptoms of Typhoid: Causes, Treatment & Prevention

Symptoms of typhoid include high fever, loss of appetite, and diarrhoea. Typhoid is a bacterial infection that spreads by contaminated food or drink. Poor hygiene conditions can also spread it. 

• Symptoms of typhoid can usually be seen in one to three weeks after exposure.
• It is a type of infection that can spread throughout your body, affecting a variety of organs. 
• Typhoid is also known as typhoid fever.
• The disease is caused by salmonella serotype Typhi bacteria.
• In this way, the cells of bacteria tend to replicate within the human body.
• Symptoms of typhoid can lead to severe complications like internal bleeding and death in some cases.
• The infection also spreads after eating contaminated food and water.

Read More: Human Bacterial Diseases

Key Terms: Symptoms of typhoid​, Typhoid, Diarrhoea, Bacterial Infection, Typhoid fever, Salmonella typhi, Organs, Hygiene, Infection, Antibiotic, Fever, Bacteria

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What is Typhoid?

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The bacterium that causes this Typhoid is Salmonella typhi, and humans are the only ones who can get it. The first case of typhoid was documented in the United States. Around 21 million people are infected with this disease each year, with approximately 200,000 instances resulting in death. 

• Typhoid is caused by food and water bodies deposited by human carrier.
• The disease is also caused by faecal-oral route.
• The bacteria can easily enters through the wall of intestine.
• Typhoid cells tends to multiply in lymphoid tissue.
• ST1 and ST2 are two varieties of typhoid-causing bacteria.

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Symptoms of Typhoid

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The symptoms of typhoid are as follows:

• Headache
• Muscle aches
• Weakness and fatigue
• Sweating
• Loss of appetite and weight loss
• Abdominal pain
• Dry cough
• Diarrhoea or constipation
• Rash
• Highly swollen abdomen
• Fever begins low and gradually rises over the day, eventually reaching a high of 104.9 degrees Fahrenheit

If you do not receive any proper treatment, you may experience the following:

• You start to feel delirious, which is also known as the typhoid state.
• In this state, you lie still and tired with your eyes half-closed.
• Some life-threatening problems frequently begin to emerge around this period. 
• After the fever has receded, the signs and symptoms may reappear for up to two weeks.

Read More: Antacids

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Causes of Typhoid

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Salmonella typhi, a highly pathogenic organism, causes typhoid. Despite their similarities, Salmonella typhi and the bacteria that cause salmonellosis, a deadly intestinal infection.

Typhoid Carriers

Even after antibiotic therapy, a small percentage of persons who recover from typhoid fever have germs in their intestines or gallbladders for years. These patients, known as chronic carriers, shed the bacteria in their faeces and can infect multiple people even though they no longer show signs or symptoms of the disease.

Read More: Pathogens 

Faecal-Oral Transmission Route

The germs that cause typhoid fever can be spread by contaminated food or water and through direct contact with an infected individual. Most cases of typhoid fever in poorer countries are caused by contaminated drinking water and inadequate sanitation. 

• Most persons in developed countries contract typhoid bacteria while travelling.
• The bacteria is disseminated to others via fecal-oral transmission.
• This means that infected persons spread salmonella typhi through their faeces and, in some cases, their urine. 
• You can also get the virus if you eat food handled by someone with typhoid fever.
• It is transmitted by people who still need to clean their hands well after using the restroom. 
• If you drink water that has been polluted with bacteria, you may become affected.

Read More: Sexually Transmitted Diseases

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Complications of Typhoid

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The complications that arises in case of typhiod are as follows:

• Intestinal bleeding or holes
• Inflammation of the heart muscle (myocarditis)
• Inflammation of the lining of the heart and the valves (endocarditis)
• Pneumonia
• Inflammation of the pancreas (pancreatitis)
• Kidney or bladder infections
• Infection and inflammation of the membranes and fluid surrounding your brain and the spinal cord (meningitis)
• Psychiatric problems, such as delirium and paranoid psychosis.

Read More: Human Health and Diseases

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Treatment of Typhoid

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Typhoid fever demands immediate medical attention as well as antibiotics. If typhoid fever is caught early enough, the infection is usually mild and can be treated at home with a seven to fourteen-day course of antibiotic tablets.

• Severe instances of typhoid fever necessitate hospitalization so that antibiotic injections can be administered.
• Most individuals begin to feel better within a few days after receiving brief antibiotic therapy.
• It is believed that up to 1 in 5 people with typhoid fever will die if the disease is not treated.
• Some of those who survive may develop issues as a result of the illness.

Read More: Gram-Negative Bacteria

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Prevention of Typhoid

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Safe drinking water, good sanitation, and adequate medical care can prevent and control typhoid. In many underdeveloped countries, achieving these goals may be challenging. As a result, some scientists believe that vaccinations are the most effective strategy to prevent typhoid disease.

Vaccines

Two vaccines are available in case of typhoid. It should be injected at least one week before travel. An individual must be given four capsules orally every other day. Neither vaccine is guaranteed to be 100 percent effective.

• Their potency fades out over time; both require repeated vaccines.
• If you live in or plan to go to locations where typhoid disease is a serious threat, you should get vaccinated.

Read More: Pathogens vs Parasites

Precautions

The following precautions an individual must take in case of typhoid are as follows:

Wash your hands properly

Hand washing in hot, soapy water regularly is the most effective technique to prevent infection. Before eating or preparing food, as well as after using the restroom, wash your hands. When water isn't accessible, carry an alcohol-based hand sanitiser.

Avoid drinking untreated water

In locations where typhoid disease is endemic, contaminated drinking water is a particular problem. As a result, stick to bottled water, carbonated beverages in cans or bottles, wine, or beer.

• Carbonated bottled water is safer than bottled water that has not been carbonated.
• Request drinks that aren't served with ice.
• Brush your teeth with bottled water, and avoid swallowing water in the shower.

Avoid eating raw fruits and vegetables

Avoid fruits and vegetables that you can't peel, especially lettuce, because they may have been washed in polluted water. To be on the safe side, stay away from raw foods.

Choose to eat hot foods

Food that has been stored or served at room temperature should be avoided. The finest foods are those that are steaming hot. And, while there's no guarantee that food served in the finest restaurants is safe, it's recommended to avoid street food because it's more likely to be contaminated.

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Things to Remember

• Symptoms of typhoid include sustaining a high fever of around 39° to 40°C.
• Typhoid is caused by Salmonella typhi.
• It affects the small intestine and then moves to other body parts through blood.
• Typhoid can be transmitted by contaminated food and water.
• Symptoms of Typhoid include weakness, stomach pain, constipation, intestinal perforation, and death, which may occur in severe cases.
• The medical test conducted to confirm Typhoid presence is called the Widal test.