typhoid fever
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GC: n

S: CDC – http://www.cdc.gov/nczved/divisions/dfbmd/diseases/typhoid_fever/ (last access: 2 September 2014); NIH – http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/001332.htm (last access: 2 September 2014).

N: 1. 1800, literally “resembling typhus,” from typhus + -oid. The noun is from 1861, a shortened form of typhoid fever (1845), so called because it originally was thought to be a variety of typhus. Typhoid Mary (1909) was Mary Mallon (d.1938), a typhoid carrier who worked as a cook and became notorious after it was learned she unwittingly had infected hundreds in U.S.
2. Typhoid fever is a bacterial disease, caused by Salmonella typhi (S. typhi). It is transmitted through the ingestion of food or drink contaminated by the faeces or urine of infected people.
3. Symptoms usually develop 1–3 weeks after exposure, and may be mild or severe. They include high fever, malaise, headache, constipation or diarrhoea, rose-coloured spots on the chest, and enlarged spleen and liver. Healthy carrier state may follow acute illness. Typhoid fever can be treated with antibiotics. However, resistance to common antimicrobials is widespread. Healthy carriers should be excluded from handling food.
4. S. typhi is spread through contaminated food, drink, or water. If you eat or drink something that is contaminated with the bacteria, the bacteria enter your body. They travel into your intestines, and then into your blood. The bacteria travel through the blood to your lymph nodes, gallbladder, liver, spleen, and other parts of the body.
5. Some persons become carriers of S. typhi and continue to release the bacteria in their stools for years, spreading the disease.
6. Typhoid fever is common in developing countries. Fewer than 400 cases are reported in the U.S. each year. Most cases in the U.S. are brought in from other countries where typhoid fever is common.
7. Cultural Interrelation: We can mention two articles: Typhoid Mary An Urban Historical, written by Anthony Bourdain and Typhoid Mary The Sad Story of a Woman Responsible for Several Typhoid Outbreaks, written by Jennifer Rosenberg.

S: 1. OED – http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?allowed_in_frame=0&search=typhoid&searchmode=none (last access: 5 September 2014). 2 & 3. WHO – http://www.who.int/water_sanitation_health/diseases/typhoid/en/ (last access: 9 November 2013). 4, 5 & 6. NIH – http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/001332.htm (last access: 2 September 2014). 7. NYTIMES – https://www.nytimes.com/books/first/b/bourdain-01mary.html (last access: 3 April 2015); http://history1900s.about.com/od/1900s/a/typhoidmary.htm (last access: 3 April 2015).

SYN: enteric fever

S: HPA – http://www.hpa.org.uk/web/HPAweb&HPAwebStandard/HPAweb_C/1259152344471 (last access: 14 November 2013); TFD – http://www.thefreedictionary.com/typhoid+fever (last access: 9 November 2013). 7.

CR: fever, headache, salmonella, salmonellosis, typhus.