Human Health and Diseases — BIOLOGY STD 12 Science — Question

Typhoid is an infective disease caused by Gram-ve bacterium, Salmonella typhi.
(1) It is food and water-borne infection. In the intestinal lumen of infected person this bacteria is found.

(2) The bacterium has “O” – antigen, which is a lipopolysaccharide (LPS), present on surface coat and its flagella has “H” – antigen. Thus it becomes pathogenic.

(3) Signs and Symptoms of typhoid are as follows:
Prolonged and high fever with nausea, fatigue, headache.
Abdominal pain, constipation or diarrhoea. In severe cases rose-coloured rash is seen on skin. Tongue shows white coating and there is cough. Anorexia or loss of appetite is seen. In chronic cases there is breathlessness, irregular heartbeats and haemorrhage.

(4) Poor hygiene habits and poor sanitation and insects like houseflies and cockroaches spread typhoid.

(5) Typhoid is diagnosed by Widal test.

(6) Antibiotics like Chloromycetin can cure typhoid. Preventive vaccines such as oral Ty21a vaccine and injectable typhim vi and typherix against typhoid are also available. Chronic cases need surgical removal of gall bladder.