Manhattan, New York – New research found that rats scurrying around New York carry some scary diseases and germs, including salmonella and E. Coli. The same study discovered that the critters could likewise become reservoirs of Seoul Hanta-virus, which causes Ebola-like hemorrhagic fever as well as kidney failure in humans that was never documented in the state.
The Center for Infection and Immunity of Columbia University director and lead author of the study W. Ian Lipkin said rats are really sentinels for human diseases. Urgent care is necessary since rats are all over New York, from uptown, downtown, and underground. These critters microbes and then amplify them, creating the opportunity to transfer such germs into humans.
Scientists were able to trap 133 rats from 5 different Manhattan locations, taking DNA samples from the animal’s saliva, urine, feces, and tissues. About 15 protozoan and bacterial pathogens were extracted from the rodents and tests indicated salmonella, E. Coli, and Clostridium difficile that can cause from mild to life-threatening diseases and germs, as well as infections in humans.
There has been no sufficient data that correlates rats with foodborne illness outbreaks. However, health experts warn people that rats should be considered as a risk factor in transmitting gastrointestinal diseases. There have been 2.1 million recorded cases of foodborne illnesses within the city each year, requiring people at homes, restaurants, urgent care clinics, and all establishments to take extra preventive measures.
Cadhla Firth, a Columbia University research scientist also emphasized that New Yorkers have been exposed to rats consistently, thus, the services of an urgent care clinic would be necessary every now and then as rats could carry the most pathogens among any other creatures. People in the city should also be provided with a sort of an urgent care near me facility when threats related to these critters occur any time.
Additionally, diseases and germs that could be caused by rats include the Seoul Hantavirus, a Korean and Asian native illness that was discovered in the study’s 8 rat samples. The virus infection could be asymptomatic when transmitted to humans, although some cases had indicated hemorrhagic fever, including renal syndrome associated to the Hantavirus in Los Angeles and Maryland.
Health experts also believe that the genetic clues found suggested that the disease arrived in the city just recently. Thus, the diseases and germs being carried and transmitted by these rodents could cause several ailments or could claim human lives if sufficient data and health practices are not implemented.
