Symptoms of EHEC infection

EHEC Symptoms

EHEC infection: From barely noticeable to strongly life-threatening symptoms

24/05/2011

Enterohaemorrhagic Escherichia coli (EHEC) are a relatively common bacterium and cause various symptoms depending on the course of the disease. The main reservoir of germs are ruminants such as cattle, sheep and goats. The pathogens are usually absorbed by humans via food, but human-to-human transmission is also possible after the onset of EHEC infection. So far, three deaths due to EHEC infection have been reported. Over 300 people have been infected so far. It is still unclear which food or drink the EHEC bacteria spreads.

Essential EHEC symptoms
The main symptoms of dangerous EHEC infections are watery, bloody, diarrheal bowel movements, usually accompanied by severe cramping abdominal pain, fever, nausea and vomiting. However, the various sequelae can be associated with a variety of other symptoms such as kidney pain, increased liver enzymes and uraemia. Since serious health impairments threatened by the EHEC infection, according to the experts of the Robert Koch Institute and the nationwide health authorities at the onset of the first symptoms immediately a doctor should be consulted.

Transmission of EHEC pathogens
Transmission of human EHEC pathogens in most cases occurs through contaminated food. The consumption of raw meat and raw milk products is also considered as a possible source of infection, such as food contaminated by feces of ruminants, drinking and bathing water. Infections have already been detected by ground beef, raw milk, unpasteurised apple juice, vegetables, lettuce and sprouts. In addition, the pathogens can also pass from the animals directly to humans, the health authorities warn. After the onset of EHEC-related bloody diarrheal disease is also a human-to-human transmission possible. About two to eight days after contact with the pathogens, the first signs of EHEC infection may appear.

Bloody Diarrheal Disease The main symptom of EHEC infection
However, the symptoms of EHEC infection can be extremely different. While in shallow disease often only an ordinary vomiting diarrhea occurs, threaten in more serious EHEC infection significant health impairments, such as enterohaemorrhagic colitis (EHEC-related inflammation of the intestine) or the hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). Both diseases can be associated with a variety of serious symptoms and life-threatening consequences for those affected. Thus, the typical symptoms of enterohaemorrhagic colitis are a bloody, extremely watery defecation, painful abdominal cramping and increased inflammatory levels in the blood. The toxins of EHEC pathogens destroy the blood vessels and can cause tissue bleeding, thereby increasingly activating platelets (blood platelets) for blood clotting and consuming them at the damaged tissue site. In addition, enterohaemorrhagic colitis is often accompanied by a reduction in the number of platelets (thrombocytopenia) in the body, which can lead to adverse effects on wound healing.

EHEC causes hemolytic uremic syndrome
The hemolytic-uremic syndrome (HUS), for its part, also causes a large number of significant health impairments. The typical symptoms are also due to the endothelial damage (wall layer of the blood vessels) caused internal bleeding, especially in the area of ​​the renal arteries. This is usually associated with a so-called anemia (anemia), which in turn can cause a lack of oxygen supply to the whole body and is often characterized by a massive decline in performance and fatigue. In addition, headache, oxygenation, tinnitus, nausea, difficulty concentrating, insomnia, and vision problems are all possible consequences of anemia due to undersupply of the brain. The lack of oxygen can also lead to minimal excretion of blood in the urine and slight protein excretion (proteinuria). In addition, accelerated breathing (tachypnoea) and increased heart rate (tachycardia) are possible consequences of HUS-related anemia. In severe cases, the hemolytic uremic syndrome can also cause acute renal failure, which in turn can have life-threatening consequences.

Renal failure as a result of EHEC infection
Acute kidney failure resulting from HUS is one of the most serious consequences of EHEC infection. Renal failure causes regulatory problems in the fluid, electrolyte and acid-base balance, which can lead to disturbances in the excretion of urinary substances (eg creatinine). The end products of the protein metabolism (urea, for example) and other urinary substances remain in the organism and threaten life-threatening urine poisoning or uraemia (urinary substances in the blood). In the worst case, the poisonings trigger a multi-organ failure that often results in the death of the patient. Permanent damage to the kidneys (terminal renal insufficiency) can also be triggered by the HUS, although the kidney does not recover even after the EHEC infection has passed. In case of doubt, the patients can only be helped by a kidney transplant or they need a lifetime of dialysis (blood cleansing). Dialysis is also the only treatment that offers a promising therapeutic approach to the HUS-related occurrence of urinary-type substances in the blood. (Fp)

Read about EHEC:
First deaths from EHEC infections
No antibiotic in EHEC
Enigmatic infections caused by EHEC pathogens
Signs of internal dehydration (dehydration)
infectious diseases