Here’s the first installment, on Leptospirosis, a bacterial disease that can be deadly if left untreated.
San Juan, Puerto Rico—Conditions are ripe for disease in Puerto Rico.
People are living many to a house or shelter, as they concentrate near sources of power and running water.
It’s still unclear whether Leptospirosis is spreading or not.
Samples from the suspected cases have been sent to the US for testing.
The first 10 cases were reported the second week of October; a week later, they had gone up to 73 suspected cases.
Walke, and Puerto Rico’s state epidemiologist, Carmen Deseda, say they are waiting for the rest of the test results to evaluate whether there’s been an outbreak or not.
Puerto Ricans should be cautious about those diseases as well, they add.
In the meantime, they say, they are treating all patients with Leptospirosis symptoms with antibiotics.
“Time will tell how efficient we were in spreading that message.” She and Walke expect the threat of disease to go down as power and water services are restored.