Anthrax : (noun)
1: a highly infectious animal disease (especially cattle and
sheep); it can be transmitted to people [syn: splenic
fever]
2: a disease of humans that is not communicable; caused by
infection with Bacillus anthracis followed by septicemia
3: a species of Bacillus that causes anthrax in humans and in
animals (cattle and swine and sheep and sheep and rabbits
and mice and guinea pigs); can be used a bioweapon [syn: Bacillus
anthracis]
Based on WordNet 2.0
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Anthrax : \An"thrax\, n. [L., fr. Gr. ? coal, carbuncle.]
1. (Med.)
(a) A carbuncle.
(b) A malignant pustule.
2. (Biol.) A microscopic, bacterial organism ({Bacillus
anthracis), resembling transparent rods. [See Illust.
under Bacillus.]
3. An infectious disease of cattle and sheep. It is ascribed
to the presence of a rod-shaped bacterium ({Bacillus
anthracis), the spores of which constitute the contagious
matter. It may be transmitted to man by inoculation. The
spleen becomes greatly enlarged and filled with bacteria.
Called also splenic fever.
Based on Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
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Malignant \Ma*lig"nant\, a. [L. malignans, -antis, p. pr. of
malignare, malignari, to do or make maliciously. See
Malign, and cf. Benignant.]
1. Disposed to do harm, inflict suffering, or cause distress;
actuated by extreme malevolence or enmity; virulently
inimical; bent on evil; malicious.
A malignant and a turbaned Turk. --Shak.
2. Characterized or caused by evil intentions; pernicious.
``Malignant care.'' --Macaulay.
Some malignant power upon my life. --Shak.
Something deleterious and malignant as his touch.
--Hawthorne.
3. (Med.) Tending to produce death; threatening a fatal
issue; virulent; as, malignant diphtheria.
Malignant pustule (Med.), a very contagious disease,
transmitted to man from animals, characterized by the
formation, at the point of reception of the virus, of a
vesicle or pustule which first enlarges and then breaks
down into an unhealthy ulcer. It is marked by profound
exhaustion and usually fatal. Called also charbon, and
sometimes, improperly, anthrax.
Based on Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
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Carbuncle \Car"bun*cle\, n. [L. carbunculus a little coal, a
bright kind of precious stone, a kind of tumor, dim. of carbo
coal: cf. F. carboncle. See Carbon.]
1. (Min.) A beautiful gem of a deep red color (with a mixture
of scarlet) called by the Greeks anthrax; found in the
East Indies. When held up to the sun, it loses its deep
tinge, and becomes of the color of burning coal. The name
belongs for the most part to ruby sapphire, though it has
been also given to red spinel and garnet.
2. (Med.) A very painful acute local inflammation of the
subcutaneous tissue, esp. of the trunk or back of the
neck, characterized by brawny hardness of the affected
parts, sloughing of the skin and deeper tissues, and
marked constitutional depression. It differs from a boil
in size, tendency to spread, and the absence of a central
core, and is frequently fatal. It is also called
anthrax.
3. (Her.) A charge or bearing supposed to represent the
precious stone. It has eight scepters or staves radiating
from a common center. Called also escarbuncle.
Based on Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
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Anthrax : Anthrax : A serious bacterial infection caused by Bacillus anthracis that occurs primarily in animals. Cattle, sheep, horses, mules, and some wild animals are highly susceptible. Humans
and swine are generally quite resistant to anthrax. Humans become infected when the spores of B. anthracis enter the body by contact with animals infected with B. anthracis or from contact with
contaminated animal products, insect bites, ingestion, or inhalation. Aerosolized ("weaponized") spores of B. anthracis can potentially be used (misused) for biological warfare and bioterrorism.
Cutaneous anthrax is the most common form of the disease and is characterized by the development of a localized skin lesion with a central eschar surrounded by marked edema (swelling). Inhalation
anthrax (woolsorters' disease) typically involves hemorrhagic mediastinitis (bleeding into the mid-chest), rapidly progressive systemic (bodywide) infection, and carries a very high mortality rate.
Gastrointestinal anthrax is much rarer but is also associated with a high mortality rate.
Anthrax can, as mentioned, take different forms. One is the pulmonary (lung) form of the disease. It is contracted by inhaling a large dose of the anthrax spores, typically in an enclosed space
protected from direct sunlight. (The spores are quickly killed by sunlight.) If pulmonary anthrax is untreated, it is usually fatal. An intestinal form of anthrax is caused by eating meat contaminated
with anthrax.
But most human anthrax comes from skin contact with animal products contaminated by anthrax. Cutaneous (skin) anthrax was once well known among people who handled infected animals (farmers,
woolsorters, tanners, brushmakers and carpetmakers in the days when the brushes and carpets were animal products).
The hallmark of skin anthrax is a carbuncle, a cluster of boils, that ulcerates. Typically, the carbuncle has a hard black center surrounded by bright red inflammation . This dramatic appearance
accounts for its name, "anthrax", the Greek word for "coal", a burning coal.
The cutaneous form of anthrax is treated with antibiotics such as penicillin, ciprofloxacin (Cipro) .
The pulmonary form of anthrax is an emergency and calls for early continuous IV antibiotics (such as penicillin in combination with streptomycin).
There is an anthrax vaccine for persons at high risk (such as members of the armed forces). However, the only anthrax vaccine currently made in the USA is experiencing problems with production
standardization.
Bioterrorism -- The General Accounting Office (GAO), the investigative arm of the US Congress, in a 1999 report considered anthrax as a "possible" biologic threat for terrorism, but noted
that a virulent strain of the bacterium is difficult to acquire and that an attack would require sophistication to manufacture and disseminate the bacteria. The GAO considered the lethal effects of
anthrax to be "very high."
In the autumn of 2001, anthrax was no longer a "possible" biologic threat for terrorism. With its distribution through the mail in the US, anthrax became a 21st-century agent of bioterrorism .
Based on University of Miami School of Medicine [Medical_Dictionary]:
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Anthrax : What is anthrax?
Anthrax is a highly infectious disease that normally affects animals, especially ruminants (such as goats, cattle, sheep, and horses), but which can be
transmitted to humans by contact with infected animals or their products or by { biological warfare.
What causes anthrax?
The agent of anthrax is a bacteria called Bacillus anthracis that looks like a large rod under the microscope. Its spores resist destruction and remain
viable in the soil and in animal products for years, even for decades.
How is anthrax contracted?
Humans are usually infected through the skin or from eating meat contaminated with anthrax. The spores of anthrax, once inhaled, can result with
disease in the lungs (referred to as pulmonary anthrax of woolsorter's disease), which is often fatal.
How common is anthrax?
Anthrax is now rare in humans in the United States and comparable countries. It still occurs today largely in countries lacking public health regulations
that prevent exposure to infected goats, cattle, sheep, and horses and their products. There is great concern about anthrax as an agent of biological warfare.
How long is the incubation period with anthrax?
The incubation period (the period between contact with anthrax and the start of symptoms) is relatively short. It generally ranges
from 3 to 5 days but can be as brief as 12 hours.
What kind of disease is anthrax?
There are three forms of disease caused by anthrax: cutaneous (skin) anthrax, pulmonary (lung) anthrax, and gastrointestinal (intestinal)
anthrax.
CUTANEOUS ANTHRAX
The cutaneous (skin) form of anthrax starts as a red-brown raised spot that enlarges with considerable redness around it, blistering, and hardening. The center of the spot
then shows an ulcer crater with blood-tinged drainage and the formation of a black crust called an eschar. There are swollen glands (lymph nodes) in the area and there may be muscle aching and pain,
headache, fever, nausea, and vomiting.
PULMONARY ANTHRAX
Anthrax of the lungs occurs after rapid multiplication of anthrax spores in the lymph nodes in the chest. Severe hemorrhage and tissue death (necrosis) occurs in these
lymph nodes in the chest and the disease spreads to the adjacent lungs. The first symptoms are subtle, gradual and much like flu ( influenza ). The fever rises. In a few days, there is severe
respiratory distress. Then comes shock and coma.
GASTROINTESTINAL ANTHRAX
Now very rare, anthrax of the bowels (gastrointestinal anthrax) is the result of eating contaminated meat in the presence of a break in the lining of the pharynx or
intestine (so the bacteria can invade the intestinal wall). The bacterial toxin causes hemorrhage and tissue death (necrosis) of the lymph nodes adjacent to the intestine. Then septicemia (blood stream
infection) occurs with deadly toxicity.
How is the diagnosis made of anthrax?
The history, including the occupation of the person, is important. The bacteria may be found in cultures or smears in cutaneous (skin)
anthrax and in throat swabs and sputum in pulmonary anthrax. Chest x-rays may also show characteristic changes in and between the lungs.
How is anthrax treated?
The cutaneous (skin) form of anthrax can be treated with antibiotics such as penicillin, ciprofloxin (Cipro) .
The pulmonary form of anthrax is an emergency. Early and continuous intravenous therapy with antibiotics (such as penicillin in combination with streptomycin) may be lifesaving.
How can anthrax be prevented?
Public health measures to prevent contact with infected animals are invaluable. There is a vaccine available for persons at high risk (such as
veterinarians, laboratory technicians, employees of textile mills processing imported goat hair, and members of the armed forces). - Anthrax is
an infection by bacteria transmitted from animals.
- Anthrax causes skin, lung, and bowel disease and can be deadly.
- Anthrax is diagnosed by cultures from infected tissues.
- Anthrax is treated
by antibiotics.
- Anthrax can be prevented.
Based on University of Miami School of Medicine [Medical_Dictionary]:
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