10 Million Deaths Per Year “Cannibal Bacteria” is Coming for You
A Dreaded Disease with a 30% fatality rate that kills within tens of hours of onset kills up to 10 million people a year worldwide
Cannibal bacteria, an “assassin”-like disease that approaches without a sound and takes lives in an instant, is raging. The fatality rate is about 30%, compared to the latest data of 0.13% for the new coronavirus. The time limit between onset of illness and death is only a few dozen hours.
Dr. Yu Masumori of Hakodate Ryohoku Hospital’s Department of General Medicine warns, “The trouble is that it is difficult to diagnose the disease because the initial symptoms, such as feeling unwell or having a slight swelling, do not appear to be serious.
The official name for the disease is fulminant hemolytic streptococcal infection. Streptococcus may ring a bell with some people. The bacteria, which used to cause sore throats in childhood, sometimes transforms into a “man-eating bacteria” when it enters the body’s deeper tissues (fascia, etc.). The pain is slight at first, but it spreads at a rate of several cm per hour, and the organs become necrotic. To put it simply, it rots and erodes the human body while it lives. If treatment is delayed, multiple organ failure occurs within hours.”
Dr. Masumori still remembers the case of a middle-aged man who was brought to the emergency room because of “sudden pain in his leg.
He complained of severe pain just by touching it, even though there was no injury to his leg. His blood pressure had dropped, and when his blood was checked, he was already in a state of multiple organ failure. The next day, his legs began to turn reddish-black, and two days later he passed away.
In March of this year, Yasuaki Imanari, a famous scout for Nippon Ham, died suddenly before the season opener. In 2005, Seibu coach Shinji Mori (age 42) died a few days after complaining of poor health, but it was “man-eating bacteria” that took his life in both cases.
The horror of this disease lies in the fact that masks and hand washing alone cannot prevent infection. The disease is transmitted through minute wounds that even the victims themselves are unaware of.
The sudden death of a professional baseball player caused a shock, but even healthy people are at risk of contracting the disease. The number of reported cases has increased nine-fold in the past 10 years. The countermeasure is – thoroughly clean and disinfect wounds and take measures to prevent infection. If you suspect the onset of infection, seek medical attention immediately and inform your doctor. That is the only way to prevent infection,” said Dr. Masumori.
More than 10 million people worldwide die annually from sepsis, a serious organ damage caused by bacterial and viral infections, including “man-eating bacteria. The World Health Organization has designated sepsis as “an issue that the world must tackle.
From the April 22, 2022 issue of FRIDAY
Reporting and writing： Eri Yoshizawa (medical journalist and pharmacist) PHOTO： Science Photo Library/Afro (Streptococcus)
