According to a recent study, the continuation of global warming would lead to an increase in the number and spread of potentially fatal infections by the bacterium nicknamed “flesh-eating”, Vibrio vulnificus.
- Vibrio vulnificus is nicknamed flesh-eating bacteria because, if infected, it can seriously damage a person’s flesh: many survivors have had their limbs amputated.
- This potentially deadly bacterium can infect a cut or insect bite upon contact with seawater.
- The number of annual cases in the United States could double by 2041-2060 and reach areas further north, according to this new study.
A new study conducted by the British University of East Anglia (UEA), published on March 23 in the journal Scientific Reportsshows that the number of infections with Vibrio vulnificus along the east coast of the United States, an area where many of these infections are recorded each year, increased from 10 to 80 per year over a 30-year period. In addition, each year, cases occur further north.
One in five chance of dying from Vibrio vulnificus infection
The bacterium Vibrio vulnificus, which belongs to the same family as that of cholera, is found almost everywhere in the world, especially in shallow warm coastal waters. It can infect a cut or an insect bite when it comes into contact with sea water. A person infected with Vibrio vulnificus has a one in five chance of dying. It is also one of the most expensive marine pathogens to treat.
The cases of infection are more identified in summer because it is a period with more swimming and where the bacteria spreads more quickly. It can seriously damage the flesh of the infected individual, which is why it is commonly called the “flesh-eating” disease. Indeed, many of the people who survived it had to have their limbs amputated.
“Flesh-eating” disease: the number of annual cases could double
Researchers predict that by 2041-2060, infections could spread to encompass major population centers around New York City. Combined with a growing and increasingly elderly population, which is more susceptible to infection, the number of annual cases could double.
“Greenhouse gas emissions from human activity are altering our climate and the impacts can be particularly acute on the world’s coasts, which constitute a major boundary between natural ecosystems and human populations and are an important source of diseasessaid the study’s lead author, Elizabeth Archer, a researcher at UEA’s School of Environmental Sciences, in a communicated. We show that by the end of the 21st century, V. vulnificus infections will expand further north, but how far north will depend on the degree of further warming and therefore our future greenhouse gas emissions.”
What solutions to prevent infections in the population?
The study is the first to map how the locations of cases of Vibrio vulnificus have changed along the US East Coast and how climate change may influence the spread of cases in the future. Data on where people have been infected with the Vibrio vulnificus were obtained from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the principal United States federal agency for the protection of public health. This allowed the team to map how cases of Vibrio vulnificus expanded north over 30 years, from 1988 to 2018.
The research team suggests that the population and health authorities could be warned in real time of particularly risky environmental conditions through warning systems and coastal signaling specifically intended for this bacterium, in order to limit infections. Preventive measures must also be taken for those most at risk (elderly, immunocompromised, etc.).