Hazardous Flesh-Eating Ulcer in Australia May Be From Endangered Possums

Buruli ulcer, a hazardous flesh-eating ulcer is reported to be widespread in 33 countries including Australia. In this country, according to news reports, cases are remarkably high. The infection usually begins with redness and inflammation that could be disregarded as an insect bite.

An Insider article indicates that within days, the microbes can turn flesh gangrenous, at times eating away at flesh until it gets to the bone.

In 2018, Australia was reported to be the country with the third-highest Buruli ulcer rates, next to Ghana and Nigeria.

The infection is specifically widespread in the state of Victoria, where case rates have gone beyond 180 infections each year since 2016 and peaked at around 340 cases in 2018.

ALSO READ: Researchers Link 'Cat Scratch' Bacteria to Neuropsychiatric Symptoms in People

Buruli Ulcer Outbreak in Melbourne

A Buruli ulcer outbreak in Melbourne in February this year reportedly marked the first time the flesh-eating bacteria spread "locally in a non-coastal area," wrote Kathy Lord for ABC News Australia. '

Treating Buruli ulcer engages excising any dead skin and taking strong antibiotics to control the infection. It is a long and difficult process with the possibility of ending in amputation or even death for the most susceptible patients. In the best-case circumstance, patients are remaining laid up for months, confined at hospitals.

A patient told Albeck-Ripka from The New York Times that suffering from this skin infection has been a bit of a journey.

In Victoria, the Mornington Peninsula, an affluent coastal region there, has been reported to be the hardest hit by the Buruli ulcer.

According to experts, they are not sure how the place turned out to be a hotbed for the fairly rare bacteria, although they have some theories on how it's spreading.

Animal-to-Human Disease

Scientists now think that the Buruli ulcer is an animal-to-human disease. Meaning, it jumps from animals to humans like the COVID-19 infection and most of the emerging diseases today.

These experts believe that the disease begins in possums then reaches humans through mosquitoes that have come into contact with the feces of animals.

The microbes have been found in possum feces in affected sites which include the Melbourne suburbs that experienced an outbreak.

Nevertheless, since possums are protected as a native Australian species, scrapping the possum population is not a choice at present.

For now, the said news report said, experts are collecting possum poop and catching mosquitoes, along with hopes of learning more about the Buruli ulcer that's recently infecting a lot of Australians and those from other countries.

Buruli Ulcer Signs and Symptoms

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the signs and symptoms of Buruli ulcer to closely watch include swelling of the skin destroyed skin and soft tissue, and one or more slow-growing commonly painless ulcers.

The CDC recommends if one experiences the said signs and symptoms, he should see a doctor right away and get antibiotics, a common type of medicine that can help end the disease.

The health agency also cautioned that if such antibiotics are not given right after contracting the disease, it can sometimes result in deformity, functional disability like the limited movement of the joints, bone infection, and skin ulcer lesions' secondary bacterial infection.

A related report on Buruli ulcer in Melbourne is shown on news.com.au's YouTube video below: