Not only do we have to contend with large killer crocodiles, man eating sharks, deadly King Brown snakes, let alone drunken drivers on the roads, there is a new and more deadly killer in our midst.
Chances of recovery.........less than 50%, although they are getting a bit better as medical staff learn how to deal with the disease and treat the symptoms. That is in Darwin......where there is some knowledge. In Thailand, the estimated death toll annually is over 1000.
The nasty is .............melioidosis. And you can catch it while GARDENING.
This is absolutely true http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,25112442-23289,00.html gives more details. As does http://abovecapricorn.blogspot.com/ .
In Darwin it used to be called Nightcliff Gardeners Disease, but that is a bit unfair. Just because many residences in Nightcliff have active gardeners, and are more exposed to the disease.
At last there seems to be developing a better understanding of the etiology of the disease, with significant work being done at the Darwin locally based Menzies School of Health Research. I have had a few discussions with staff there regarding knowledge of the disease among medical staff in Thailand, where I have worked and was a bit more apprehensive than normal as I knew I would be wandering around in rice paddies.
It seems to occur in many tropical and subtropical regions and countries. The warning now here is to use gloves while gardening and to wear covered shoes. This can be difficult in a culture where being bare footed is vey common. I have certainly been bare footed in many rice paddies and flooded pasture areas in the NT during my work. When the water is 300 - 400mm deep it hardly seems sensible to be wearing boots.
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