A casual glance at recent media or online postings might lead one to surmise that death lurks in the waters off Galveston and Corpus Christi. On the heels of headlines warning of a Zika invasion, new banners focus on flesh-eating bacteria. By this, they mean some form of the naturally-occurring Vibrio bacteria. It can indeed prove deadly for immune-compromised individuals who consume raw shellfish or expose wounds to salt water, especially during the warmer months along our coastal waters.
For example, CBS News headlined, “Day at the beach leaves Texas man with flesh-eating bacteria.” A Fox-TV outlet reported, “Second Man Contracts Flesh-Eating Bacteria from Texas Waters.”
The culprits in question are a dozen or so species of rod-shaped bacteria which are found naturally in aquatic and marine habitats from China to Scandinavia. Vibrio are notable for their efficiency as pathogens as well as for having two odd, circular chromosomes.
But they are naturally-occurring, persistent organisms that aren’t related to water pollution or other modern factors. And infections, worldwide, are rare in otherwise healthy individuals.
“Vibrios are among the most common bacteria that inhabit surface waters throughout the world and are responsible for a number of severe infections both in humans and animals,” wrote researcher Craig Baker-Austin recently in a paper titled, Antimicrobial Resistance in Vibrio Species. “Given their increasing incidence, global distribution and severity of disease progression it is critical to gain a better understanding of the antimicrobial susceptibility patterns.”
Dr. A Scott Lea, a professor of Internal Medicine and Infectious Disease at the University of Texas Medical Branch, is an expert on this troublesome set of species.
“They thrive in the sediments at the bottom of bays and marshes and grow best at temperatures that approach the average human temperature, 98.6 degrees,” he said. “So, the organism is problematic in the summer months when the waters are warm. It is not an organism associated with inorganic pollution.”
Lea said that the specific bad actor in the case of the recent news stories of “flesh-eating bacteria” along the Texas coast is called Vibrio vulnificus and that it can cause gangrene, killing parts of the skin and nearby tissues.
“When this happens, the skin and subcutaneous tissue has to be removed and the disease is termed ‘flesh eating’ by the general public,” Lea said. “Another form causes disease when ingested. In this form, the patient develops gastrointestinal infestation which then spreads into the bloodstream where it causes septic shock.”
More than 70 percent of those who contract these infections are male, in part due to the high percentage
of men involved with boats, shrimping, docks, bait and related industry.
But even if you don’t work around salt water, you’re at added risk if you have a liver disease, HIV, are taking chemotherapy or have a disease or disease treatment that weakens the immune system, like rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis or Crohn’s and are exposed to the bacteria.
Randy Valcin, manager of Diseases and Disasters at the Galveston County Health District, has fielded more than 200 calls from various media in the last several weeks over the Vibrio alarm. He said that it was important to put the recent headlines in perspective.
“When we see cases of Vibriosis at the Health District, they almost always include someone with a condition like HIV, hepatitis or diabetes who came in contact with untreated water with an open sore or wound,” Valcin said. “People who’ve been in beach water anywhere have likely been exposed to Vibrio bacteria and likely did not have a negative reaction.
“Vibriosis is rare. We typically see fewer than 10 cases per year in Galveston County and the vast majority of those affected recover without major long-term health consequences. There were six million tourists in Galveston last year and the case acquired on the island earlier this month is just one example of a very serious infection and health consequence.”
But the media may mislead on the actual incidence of such serious Vibrio infections, though it is a deadly serious matter for many of those who contract them.
“There were 124 cases of Vibrio vulnificus infection in the United States in 2014,” Lea said. “Eighty percent of those patients required hospitalization, and 18 percent died. Our experience at UTMB suggest that 50 percent of these patients will need an amputation, and the remaining patients have some degree of skin loss. This is a dramatic disease which catches people’s attention when it occurs. We see five to 10 cases a year at UTMB, on average.”
The expert advice then when it comes to Vibrio skin infections is to watch for increasing pain, swelling and redness at any abrasion or puncture wound exposed to salt water. Also fever, chills and sweats may follow. Signs like these after seawater exposure mean an immediate doctor visit is in order.
Lea called The Daily News with a late update. As far as any remaining risk, he said, “The ocean side of the island is safer than the bay side.”
The UTMB Newsroom.
Appeared in Galveston County Daily News
By RICK COUSINS Correspondent
jim rRick Cousins can be reached at [email protected]
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