Rare dog bacteria in saliva destroyed legs and hands after licking

The saliva of dogs can contain dangerous bacteria

Hardly a dog owner can not be "licked" by his own dog. The love between dog and owner knows no bounds. Rethinking could lead to the following incident. A man in the US had to have his legs amputated because he was infected with dangerous "killer" bacteria in a dog. Even a second surgery had to be performed to save the patient's life. Finally, even the hands had to be amputated to stop the inflammation. Although such an infection is extremely rare, doctors have long been advised to wash their hands regularly after caressing and petting.

Greg Manteufel was infected with the bacterium Capnocytophaga canimorsus after he was licked by a dog. The bacterium occurs in the saliva of dogs and cats. After a blood infection developed, first the legs of the affected person had to be amputated.

Affected initially thought he was suffering from the flu

The infection hit the family man so badly that he suffered a septic shock. At first Manteufel thought he was ill with the flu. However, after one hour, the symptoms became so severe that the patient had to be admitted to hospital.

Amputation of parts of the hands will follow

At the hospital, doctors first had to amputate both feet to prevent the spread of the infection. But unfortunately it turned out that the problem was much worse. The result was that the surgeons eventually had to amputate the two legs of Manteufel below the knee. In addition, further operations are planned to remove parts of both hands. In addition, a plastic surgery is needed to rebuild the man's nose, reports Fox 6 Now.

Greg's wife Dawn told The Sun: "He's 48 years old and spent most of his life with dogs. And then something like that happens! "The patient had told the doctors," Take away what you need to take away, but save my life. "And that's exactly what the doctors had to do. "We had no other way to save the patient's life," the doctors assured.

A strong reaction to the infection is very rare

The infection seems to have been triggered by the licking of a dog. Manteufel then developed a very strong response to the infection. However, such an effect is rare. More than 99 percent of people who have dogs will never have such a problem, say the experts.

Infection usually arises through dog bites

There is a study in the English language Journal of Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases which concluded that such infection is usually the result of dog bites. In a review of more than 450 patient cases, only 27 percent of participants had contracted the bacteria through scratching, licking, or unspecific contact with dogs or cats. Twenty-six percent of the total number of patients in the study died as a result of the infection.

Beware of a weak immune system when handling dogs

Such reactions are very rare, they should not prevent dog owners from having close contact with their pets. However, people with a weak immune system should be careful as they may be prone to infection. If you feel sick or unwell, keep them away from their pets for safety's sake. (sb, as)