A MAN went back to his hometown recently to visit relatives and caught some shrimps and crabs in a pond to prepare a meal for himself. However, a few days later, he began to feel sick and even fell unconscious, the Southern Metropolis Daily reported yesterday.

The man, surnamed Huang, developed a fever, diarrhea and chest tightness a few days after he had returned to Shenzhen. He thought he had a cold and didn’t pay much attention to it, but later the symptoms worsened and he was diagnosed with septic shock and multiple organ failure at a hospital.

He was later transferred to Shenzhen Hospital of Southern Medical University for treatment. According to Liu Yong, director of the department of critical care medicine, Huang was on the verge of death when he was hospitalized.

After inquiring about Huang’s recent travel, Liu found that Huang had recently gone to a pond and done farm work in his hometown. There were also rats in his hometown’s residence.

As Huang’s fever had come on suddenly followed by a diffuse pulmonary hemorrhage, Liu said Huang had developed leptospirosis complicated by a diffuse pulmonary hemorrhage.

Huang was administered penicillin to cure the leptospirosis and gradually regained consciousness. Huang has been discharged from the hospital.

Leptospirosis is an acute infectious disease caused by various types of pathogenic leptospira. The most common animals to spread the disease are rodents and pigs, and the disease is often transmitted via animal urine or through water or soil containing animal urine.

Liu suggested that residents should drain the accumulated water in the rice fields before harvesting, to reduce the chance of contact with contaminated water during farm work. Chlorinated lime or other effective medicines can also be used to disinfect contaminated water sources. (Zhang Yu)