An alarmingly high number of instances of a rare bacterial illness were discovered, prompting the alerting of an area in Australia.
Residents of the Wide Bay electoral district, which includes Noosa, Maryborough, and Gympie, have been advised by Queensland Health to be immunized against the enigmatic Q fever.
Health authorities said that 11 residents had been diagnosed with the condition as of 2022, almost double the five to seven instances that were typically reported at the same time during the previous five years.
The bacterium that causes the illness, Coxiella burnetii, is found in cattle, goats, sheep, and kangaroos. Humans may get it via direct touch or by inhaling dust that has been contaminated with urine, feces, or birth fluids.
Queensland Health has warned Q fever is on the rise and can be caught from infected animals such as cows (stock image)
Other animals like foxes and even pets such as dogs and cats can also carry the disease though it’s less common. Person to person transmission is even rarer but can happen.
Symptoms include high fever, chills, sweats, headaches, muscle and joint soreness, and extreme fatigue. Some cases can go on to develop a long-term chronic-fatigue like illness.
The symptoms can resemble the flu, leading to a risk of the disease being undiagnosed, Queensland Health warned.
Pregnant women who become infected are at risk of dangerous pregnancy complications.
Residents in the Wide Bay region of Queensland which includes Maryborough and Noosa have been warned to get vaccinated if they work with animals and to wear P2 masks if doing outdoor jobs which could create dust such as mowing the lawn or gardening (file image)
And untreated patients could develop more severe forms that can lead to hepatitis, pneumonia and inflammation of the heart called endocarditis.
In very rare cases people have died from Q fever.
Wide Bay Public Health Unit Public Health Physician Dr Josette Chor said for those working with farm animals there is a ‘highly effective’ vaccine available.
She also encouraged people doing jobs outdoors in the region such as mowing the lawn to wear a P2 filter mask.