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Deep Learning Technology: Sebastian Arnold, Betty van Aken, Paul Grundmann, Felix A. Gers and Alexander Löser. Learning Contextualized Document Representations for Healthcare Answer Retrieval. The Web Conference 2020 (WWW'20)
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A notifiable disease is any disease that is required by law to be reported to government authorities. The collation of information allows the authorities to monitor the disease, and provides early warning of possible outbreaks. In the case of livestock diseases, there may also be the legal requirement to destroy the infected livestock upon notification. Many governments have enacted regulations for reporting of both human and animal (generally livestock) diseases.
Pacheco's disease is an acute and often lethal infectious disease in psittacine birds. The disease is caused by a group of herpesviruses, "Psittacid herpesvirus 1" (PsHV-1), which consists of four genotypes. Birds which do not succumb to Pacheco's disease after infection with the virus become asymptomatic carriers that act as reservoirs of the infection. These persistently infected birds, often Macaws, Amazon parrots and some species of conures, shed the virus in feces and in respiratory and oral secretions. Outbreaks can occur when stress causes healthy birds who carry the virus to shed it. Birds generally become infected after ingesting the virus in contaminated material, and show signs of the disease within several weeks.
The main sign of Pacheco's disease is sudden death, sometimes preceded by a short, severe illness. If a bird survives Pacheco's disease following infection with PsHV-1 genotypes 1, 2 or 3, it may later develop internal papilloma disease in the gastrointestinal tract.
Susceptible parrot species include the African gray parrot, and cockatoo. Native Australian birds, such as the eclectus parrot, Bourke's parrot, and budgerigar are susceptible to Pacheco's disease, although the disease itself has not been found in Australia.
Diagnosis is based on a circular "bull's-eye" rash at the site of infection called erythema chronicum migrans, which is very similar to that seen in Lyme disease. However, the symptoms of STARI are mild, and resemble influenza, with fatigue, muscle pains, and headache. Fever is sometimes seen, but is not characteristic.
After an incubation period of up to seven days, the signs associated with swine vesicular disease occur. The first sign is a transient mild fever. Other signs include:
- Vesicles in the mouth and on the snout and feet
- Lameness and an unsteady gait, shivering and jerking–type leg movements
- Ruptured vesicles can cause ulcers on limbs and feet, and foot pads may be loosened.
Young animals are more severely affected. Recovery often occurs within a week. There is no mortality.
Swine vesicular disease has the same clinical signs as foot-and-mouth disease, and can only be diagnosed by laboratory testing.
Early localized infection can occur when the infection has not yet spread throughout the body. Only the site where the infection has first come into contact with the skin is affected. The classic sign of early local infection with Lyme disease is a circular, outwardly expanding rash called erythema chronicum migrans (EM), which occurs at the site of the tick bite three to 32 days after the tick bite. The rash is red, and may be warm, but is generally painless. Classically, the innermost portion remains dark red and becomes indurated (is thicker and firmer), the outer edge remains red, and the portion in between clears, giving the appearance of a bull's eye. However, partial clearing is uncommon, and the bull's-eye pattern more often involves central redness.
The EM rash associated with early infection is found in about 70–80% of people infected. It can have a range of appearances including the classic target bull's-eye lesion and nontarget appearing lesions. The 20–30% without the EM and the nontarget lesions can often cause misidentification of Lyme disease. Affected individuals can also experience flu-like symptoms, such as headache, muscle soreness, fever, and malaise. Lyme disease can progress to later stages even in people who do not develop a rash.
Within days to weeks after the onset of local infection, the "Borrelia" bacteria may begin to spread through the bloodstream. EM may develop at sites across the body that bear no relation to the original tick bite. Another skin condition, apparently absent in North American patients, but found in Europe, is borrelial lymphocytoma, a purplish lump that develops on the ear lobe, nipple, or scrotum.
Various acute neurological problems, termed neuroborreliosis, appear in 10–15% of untreated people. These include facial palsy, which is the loss of muscle tone on one or both sides of the face, as well as meningitis, which involves severe headaches, neck stiffness, and sensitivity to light. Inflammation of the spinal cord's nerve roots can cause shooting pains that may interfere with sleep, as well as abnormal skin sensations. Mild encephalitis may lead to memory loss, sleep disturbances, or mood changes. In addition, some case reports have described altered mental status as the only symptom seen in a few cases of early neuroborreliosis. The disease may adversely impact the heart's electrical conduction system and can cause abnormal heart rhythms such as atrioventricular block.
Swine vesicular disease (SVD) is an acute, contagious viral disease of swine caused by the swine vesicular disease virus, an enterovirus. It is characterized by fever and vesicles with subsequent ulcers in the mouth and on the snout, feet, and teats. The pathogen is relatively resistant to heat, and can persist for a long time in salted, dried, and smoked meat products. Swine vesicular disease does not cause economically-important disease, but is important due to its similarity to foot-and-mouth disease.
Southern tick-associated rash illness (STARI) or Masters' disease is an emerging infectious disease related to Lyme disease that occurs in southeastern and south-central United States. It is spread by tick bites, but the organism that causes the infection is unknown.
An estimated 60% of people infected with the fungi responsible for coccidioidomycosis have minimal to no symptoms, while 40% will have a range of possible clinical symptoms. Of those who do develop symptoms, the primary infection is most often respiratory, with symptoms resembling bronchitis or pneumonia that resolve over a matter of a few weeks. In endemic regions, coccidioidomycosis is responsible for 20% of cases of community-acquired pneumonia. Notable coccidioidomycosis signs and symptoms include a profound feeling of tiredness, fever, cough, headaches, rash, muscle pain, and joint pain. Fatigue can persist for many months after initial infection. The classic triad of coccidioidomycosis known as "desert rheumatism" includes the combination of fever, joint pains, and erythema nodosum.
Nearly 3% to 5% of infected individuals do not recover from the initial acute infection and develop a chronic infection. This can take the form of chronic lung infection or widespread disseminated infection (affecting the tissues lining the brain, soft tissues, joints, and bone). Chronic infection is responsible for most of the morbidity and mortality. Chronic fibrocavitary disease is manifested by cough, sputum, fevers, night sweats and weight loss. Osteomyelitis, including involvement of the spine, and meningitis which may occur months to years after initial infection. Severe lung disease may develop in HIV-infected persons.
Tyzzer’s disease is an acute epizootic bacterial disease found in rodents, rabbits, dogs, cats, birds, pandas, deer, foals, cattle, and other mammals including gerbils. It is caused by the spore-forming bacterium "Clostridium piliforme", formerly known as "Bacillus piliformis". It is an infectious disease characterized by necrotic lesions on the liver, is usually fatal, and is present worldwide. Animals with the disease become infected through oral ingestion of the bacterial spores and usually die within a matter of days. Animals most commonly affected include young, stressed animals in laboratory environments, such as immature rodents and rabbits. Most commonly affected wild animals include muskrats "(Ondatra zibethicus)" and occasionally cottontail rabbits "(Lepus sylvaticus)". Even today, much remains unknown about Tyzzer’s disease, including how and why it occurs.
Common clinical signs of Tyzzer’s Disease include watery diarrhea, depression, emaciation, and a ruffled coat. Other observed clinical signs include melena, depression, lethargy, and decreased temperature. In muskrats, this disease is characterized by extensive hemorrhaging within the lower intestine and abdomen. Due to the fast-acting nature of this disease, infected individuals often do not live long enough to exhibit symptoms. It is not uncommon for an infected animal to die within 1-10 days of disease contraction.
During necropsy, inflammation of the ileum, cecum, and colon are commonly present. Perhaps the most distinctive trait of this disease, however, is the grayish yellow necrotic lesions found on the liver of diseased animals. The number of these spots present can range from one to countless. Occasionally, lesions are discovered in the lower intestinal tract and heart as well. Even with physical signs and symptoms present, a conclusive diagnosis is dependent upon the presence of "C. piliforme" within the liver of the infected animal.
Covering sickness, or dourine (French, from the Arabic "darina", meaning mangy (said of a female camel), feminine of "darin", meaning dirty), is a disease of horses and other members of the family Equidae. The disease is caused by "Trypanosoma equiperdum", which belongs to an important genus of parasitic protozoa, and is the only member of the genus that is spread through sexual intercourse. The occurrence of dourine is notifiable in the European Union under legislation from the OIE. There currently is no vaccine and although clinical signs can be treated, there is no cure.
After "Coccidioides" infection, coccidioidomycosis begins with Valley fever, which is its initial acute form. Valley fever may progress to the chronic form and then to disseminated coccidioidomycosis. Therefore, "Coccidioidomycosis" may be divided into the following types:
Glanders (from Middle English ' or Old French ', both meaning glands; , ; also known as "equinia", "farcy", and "malleus") is an infectious disease that occurs primarily in horses, mules, and donkeys. It can be contracted by other animals, such as dogs, cats, goats and humans. It is caused by infection with the bacterium "Burkholderia mallei", usually by ingestion of contaminated feed or water. Signs of glanders include the formation of nodular lesions in the lungs and ulceration of the mucous membranes in the upper respiratory tract. The acute form results in coughing, fever, and the release of an infectious nasal discharge, followed by septicaemia and death within days. In the chronic form, nasal and subcutaneous nodules develop, eventually ulcerating. Death can occur within months, while survivors act as carriers.
Glanders is endemic in Africa, Asia, the Middle East, and Central and South America. It has been eradicated from North America, Australia, and most of Europe through surveillance and destruction of affected animals, and import restrictions.
"B. mallei" is able to infect humans, so is classed as a zoonotic agent. Transmission occurs by direct contact with infected animals and entry is through skin abrasions, nasal and oral mucosal surfaces, or by inhalation.
The mallein test is a sensitive and specific clinical test for glanders. Mallein (ATCvet code: ), a protein fraction of the glanders organism ("B. mallei"), is injected intradermopalpebrally or given by eye drop. In infected animals, the eyelid swells markedly in 1 to 2 days.
Glanders has not been reported in the United States since 1945, except in 2000 when an American lab researcher suffered from accidental exposure. It is a notifiable disease in the UK, although it has not been reported there since 1928.
The most common symptoms include headache, muscle aches, and fatigue. A rash may occur, but is uncommon. Ehrlichiosis can also blunt the immune system by suppressing production of TNF-alpha, which may lead to opportunistic infections such as candidiasis.
Most of the signs and symptoms of ehrlichiosis can likely be ascribed to the immune dysregulation that it causes. A "toxic shock-like" syndrome is seen in some severe cases of ehrlichiosis. Some cases can present with purpura and in one such case the organisms were present in such overwhelming numbers that in 1991 Dr. Aileen Marty of the AFIP was able to demonstrate the bacteria in human tissues using standard stains, and later proved that the organisms were indeed Ehrlichia using immunoperoxidase stains.
Experiments in mouse models further supports this hypothesis, as mice lacking TNF-alpha I/II receptors are resistant to liver injury caused by ehrlichia infection.
3% of human monocytic ehrlichiosis cases result in death; however, these deaths occur "most commonly in immunosuppressed individuals who develop respiratory distress syndrome, hepatitis, or opportunistic nosocomial infections."
Clinical appearance of the disease includes depression, a serous nasal discharge, and sporadically minor facial inflammation in mild form of the disease. In severe form, there is severe inflammation of one or both infraorbital sinuses with edema of the surrounding tissue. The swelling can cause closure of one eye or both of them. Intermandibular space and wattles of corks do swell as a course of the disease .
Pogosta disease is a viral disease, established to be identical with other diseases, Karelian fever and Ockelbo disease. The names are derived from the words Pogosta, Karelia and Ockelbo, respectively.
The symptoms of the disease include usually rash, as well as mild fever and other flu-like symptoms; in most cases the symptoms last less than 5 days. However, in some cases, the patients develop a painful arthritis. There are no known chemical agents available to treat the disease.
It has long been suspected that the disease is caused by a Sindbis-like virus, a positive-stranded RNA virus belonging to the Alphavirus genus and family Togaviridae. In 2002 a strain of Sindbis was isolated from patients during an outbreak of the Pogosta disease in Finland, confirming the hypothesis.
This disease is mainly found in the Eastern parts of Finland; a typical Pogosta disease patient is a middle-aged person who has been infected through a mosquito bite while picking berries in the autumn. The prevalence of the disease is about 100 diagnosed cases every year, with larger outbreaks occurring in 7-year intervals.
Clinical signs are normally only seen in either piglets less than 3 weeks old or pregnant sows.
Signs in piglets include rhinitis, pneumonia, anaemia, fever and sudden death. Black discoloration around the eyes is often seen and gastrointestinal and neurological signs are also reported.
Signs in pregnant sows include reproductive failure, genital ulceration and agalactia.
Infectious coryza is a serious bacterial disease of chickens which affects respiratory system and it is manifested by inflammation of the area below the eye, nasal discharge and sneezing...The disease is found all over the world causing high economic losses. Economic loss is due to stumping off and reduction of egg production in case of laying chickens. The disease was discovered early 1930s by considering clinical signs
Clinical symptoms of viral infection include external hemorrhaging, pale gills, and ascites. In some cases, mortality can occur without any apparent clinical signs of the disease. The virus has been found in high concentrations in the liver and kidney, but lower numbers of virions have been isolated from the spleen. The virus has been shown to persist subclinically in fish populations up to 10 weeks following experimental infection. Currently efforts have been made to prevent infection by the virus through the development of DNA vaccines and immunostimulatory therapeutics.
The signs shown depend on the horse's age, the strain of the infecting virus, the condition of the horse and the route by which it was infected. Most horses with EVA infection don't show any signs; if a horse does show symptoms, these can vary greatly in severity. Following infection, the first sign is fever, peaking at , followed by various signs such as depression, nasal discharge, "pink eye" (conjunctivitis), swelling over the eye (supraorbital edema), urticaria, and swelling of the limbs and under the belly (the ventral abdomen) which may extend to the udder in mares or the scrotum of male horses. More unusual signs include abortion in pregnant mares, and, most likely in foals, severe respiratory distress and death.
Chronic Lyme disease is a generally unrecognised diagnosis that encompasses "a broad array of illnesses or symptom complexes for which there is no reproducible or convincing scientific evidence of any relationship to "B. burgdorferi" infection." There is no clinical evidence that "chronic" Lyme disease is caused by a persistent infection. It is distinct from post-treatment Lyme disease syndrome, a set of lingering symptoms which may persist after successful treatment of infection with Lyme spirochetes. The symptoms of "chronic Lyme" are generic and non-specific "symptoms of life".
A number of alternative treatments are promoted for "chronic Lyme disease", of which possibly the most controversial and harmful is long-term antibiotic therapy, particularly intravenous antibiotics. Most medical authorities advise against long-term antibiotic treatment for Lyme disease, though they agree that some patients do experience lingering symptoms. Following disciplinary proceedings by State medical licensing boards in the United States, a subculture of "Lyme literate" physicians has successfully lobbied for specific legal protections, exempting them from the standard of care and Infectious Diseases Society of America treatment guidelines. This "troubling" political interference in medical care has been criticised as an example of "legislative alchemy", the process whereby pseudomedicine is legislated into practice.
About 95% of symptomatic cases report joint pain. This is typically symmetrical and with acute onset, affecting the fingers, toes, ankles, wrists, back, knees and elbows. Fatigue occurs in 90% and fever, myalgia and headache occur in 50–60%.
A rash occurs in 50% of patients and is widespread and maculopapular. Lymphadenopathy occurs commonly; sore throat and coryza less frequently. Diarrhea is rare. About 50% of people report needing time off work with the acute illness. If the rash is unnoticed, these symptoms are quite easily mistaken for more common illnesses like influenza or the common cold. Recovery from the flu symptoms is expected within a month, but, because the virus currently cannot be removed once infection has occurred secondary symptoms of joint and muscle inflammation, pain and stiffness can last for many years.
Less common manifestations include splenomegaly, hematuria and glomerulonephritis. Headache, neck stiffness, and photophobia may occur. There have been three case reports suggesting meningitis or encephalitis.
Reports from the 1980s and 1990s suggested RRV infection was associated with arthralgia, fatigue and depression lasting for years. More recent prospective studies have reported a steady improvement in symptoms over the first few months, with 15–66% of patients having ongoing arthralgia at 3 months. Arthralgias have resolved in the majority by 5–7 months. The incidence of chronic fatigue is 12% at 6 months and 9% at 12 months, similar to Epstein-Barr virus and Q fever. The only significant predictor of the likelihood of developing chronic symptoms is the severity of the acute illness itself. No other aspects of the patient's medical or psychiatric history have been found to be predictive. However, in those with the most persisting symptoms (12 months or more), comorbid rheumatologic conditions and/or depression are frequently observed .
Inclusion Body Rhinitis, also known as IBR or Cytomegalic Inclusion Disease, is a pig disease caused by porcine cytomegalovirus, which is a member of the herpesvirus family. It is a notifiable disease that is found worldwide. It is spread both vertically and horizontally and prevalence is high.
It is not a zoonosis but the risk to humans that receive pig organ transplants is currently under investigation.