What is Weils Disease?
Weil’s disease is an infection that humans can catch from rats. Rats carry and excrete an organism called Leptospira ictero-haemorrhagiae in their urine. Between 50 and 60% of all rats carry this organism. If humans are infected with this organism, it can make them very ill and even result in death. As many as 10% of all cases of human infection have resulted in death. Previously, Weil’s disease only infected people such as sewage or abattoir workers, although there have also been incidents of farm workers and miners contracting the disease. New research shows that people who perform water activities, such as cavers and potholers, are also at risk. Rats commonly live near water and other areas where they can find food, such as farms, stables and riverbanks. The organism that causes Weil’s disease in humans cannot live for very long in dry conditions, but it can survive for some length in wet or damp areas. Salt water will kill off the organism. The organism that causes Weil’s disease e
Weil’s disease is an infection that humans can catch from animals, including domestic animals like dogs. Perhaps most commonly however, the disease is spread by rats. Rats carry and excrete an organism called Leptospira ictero-haemorrhagiae in their urine. Between 50 and 60% of all rats carry this organism. If humans are infected with this organism, it can make them very ill and even result in death. As many as 10% of all cases of human infection have resulted in death. Previously, Weil’s disease only infected people such as sewage or abattoir workers, although there have also been incidents of farm workers and miners contracting the disease. New research shows that people who perform water activities, such as cavers and potholers, are also at risk. Rats commonly live near water and other areas where they can find food, such as farms, stables and riverbanks. The organism that causes Weil’s disease in humans cannot live for very long in dry conditions, but it can survive for some length
