Rat diseases

Do you know? Rats reproduce quickly and can have up to six litters of up to eight pups yearly!

Rodents such as rats and mice carry a wide range of disease-causing organisms. As a result, rat infestations can cause serious illness and impact businesses negatively. Rat control and prevention play an important role in minimising the spread of diseases.  

Call Rentokil at +6563478138 to find the best pest control advice for your home or business.

What is Hantavirus?

• Several groups of rodent-borne viruses

Transmission to humans

• Humans may be infected via

• May cause severe respiratory infections including Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome (HPS) and Hemorrhagic Fever with Renal Syndrome (HFRS)

Hantavirus Pulmonary Syndrome (HPS)

• Fatality rate of up to 36%
• Symptoms include fever, nausea, vomiting, rashes, fatigue, muscle ache, abdominal pain and dry cough with breathing difficulty
• May cause multiple organ failures
• Treatment includes supportive therapy such as oxygen therapy, fluid replacement, renal dialysis and blood pressure management

Hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS)

• Fatality rate ranges from 5-15%
• Symptoms usually develop within 1-2 weeks or may develop up to 8 weeks later
• Early symptoms include headache, abdominal pain, fever, chills, nausea and blurred vision
• Other late symptoms include low blood pressure, acute shock, vascular leakage and acute kidney failure
• Treatment includes supportive therapy such as oxygen therapy, fluid replacement, renal dialysis and blood pressure management

What is Leptospirosis?

• A bacterial disease that is transmitted from animals to humans
• Animals that transmit the infection include rodents, rats, dogs, cattle

Transmission to humans

• Spread through contact with water or soil contaminated by the urine of infected animals
• Consumption of contaminated food and beverages
• Bacteria enters the human body through contact with open wounds, eyes or mucous membranes

Symptoms

• Common symptoms include fever, severe headache, chills, vomiting and red eyes
• Leptospirosis can lead to severe diseases and even death. These diseases include jaundice, weil's disease, meningitis, lung bleeding, haemorrhage into skin and mucous membranes

Treatment

• Slow recovery
• Treated with antibiotics
• Intravenous antibiotics and fluids may be necessary for those with severe developments
• Complications resulting from severe diseases such as meningitis and weil’s disease may require specialised care and supportive treatments

What is Rat Bite Fever?

• Bacterial disease transmitted by animals including rodents, weasels and squirrels

Transmission to humans

• Spread by contact with the urine and mucous secretions of infected animals

Symptoms

• Bites usually heal fast, however, other symptoms may develop
• 3 to 10 days after contact with the bacteria, symptoms that may develop include fever, diarrhoea, vomiting, headache, muscle pain, rashes, joint pain and swelling
• Within 2 to 4 days after the onset of fever, rashes and swollen joints may develop

Treatment

• Treated with antibiotics
• Intravenous antibiotics may be necessary for those with severe bites
• If left untreated, streptobacillary rat-bite fever can result in infection in the lining of the heart, spinal cord, brain or lungs
• Potentially fatal

What is Salmonellosis?

• Bacterial disease that affects the intestinal tract
• Two species including Salmonella enterica and S. bongori

Transmission to humans

• Consumption of food and beverages contaminated with infected rodent faeces
• An infected person can spread the disease through contact with another
• Good hand hygiene and washroom sanitation can minimise transmissions between humans

Symptoms

• Symptoms typically occur between 12 to 36 hours after exposure
• Common symptoms include fever, diarrhoea, abdominal cramps and vomiting

Treatment

• Treated with antibiotics
• Possible to recover in a few days with just replacement of body fluids
• Intravenous fluids may be necessary for severe cases

What is Lymphocytic Choriomeningitis?

• Rodent-borne infection
• Varying severity

Transmission to humans

• Open contact with infected rodents’ saliva, urine and faeces
• Through the bite of an infected rodent
• Infected through the inhalation of infectious aerosolized particles
• Consumption of contaminated food

Symptoms

• 8 to 13 days after exposure, fever, muscle aches, headaches, nausea and vomiting may occur
• Following a few days of recovery, a second phase of illness may occur. Symptoms may include

• Severe cases may lead to acute hydrocephalus or increased fluids on the brain which requires emergency surgery to relieve the pressure in the brain

Treatment

• Treatment options depend on the severity of the disease
• Anti-inflammatory drugs may be prescribed
• If meningitis, encephalitis or meningoencephalitis develops, hospitalisation is required

What is Typhus?

• Disease caused by bacteria transmitted through infected arthropods such as fleas, mites, lice and ticks
• Arthropods are infected when they bite infected animals such as rats and rodents
• There are 3 different strains of typhus including epidemic, endemic and scrub
• Arthropods are typically carriers of a typhus strain unique to their species

Transmission to humans

• When an infected arthropod bites a person, an open wound is created
• The infected arthropod is expected to defecate when they feed
• The faeces can cause infection through contact with the open wound

Epidemic

• Caused by Rickettsia prowazekii
• Carried by ticks
• Symptoms include high fever, rashes, confusion and low blood pressure

Endemic

• Caused by Rickettsia typhi
• Carried by the rat flea
• Symptoms are similar to epidemic typhus but may include dry cough, vomiting and diarrhoea

Scrub

• Caused by Orientia tsutsugamushi
• Carried by mites
• Symptoms include swollen lymph nodes, fatigue, sores and cough

Symptoms

• Symptoms start 2 weeks after contact with infected fleas
• Signs that are associated with all types of typhus include fever, chills, muscle ache, nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, cough and rashes
• Untreated typhus may lead to organ damage and death

Treatment

• Treat with antibiotics