Typhoid Fever

Featured patient discussions on typhoid fever

"I contracted typhoid fever in 2005 while on vacation in Mexico. The day of my return, I became violently ill. I had uncontrollable diarrhea and vomiting. My fever shot up to 104 degrees, and I was hospitalized where I remained for seven days. I was packed on ice continually as my fever shot to 105. I suffered convulsions. The pain in my body was so excruciating. I was put on a morphine drip, and I have a high tolerance for pain. Blood tests showed minimal kidney function and liver failure. Even after I was released, I continued to have fevers of 104 and 105. I was disabled by this illness for months."

How do patients get typhoid fever?

Typhoid fever is contracted by the ingestion of the bacteria in contaminated food or water. Patients with acute illness can contaminate the surrounding water supply through stool, which contains a high concentration of the bacteria. Contamination of the water supply can, in turn, taint the food supply. About 3%-5% of patients become carriers of the bacteria after the acute illness. Some patients suffer a very mild illness that goes unrecognized. These patients can become long-term carriers of the bacteria. The bacteria multiplies in the gallbladder, bile ducts, or liver and passes into the bowel. The bacteria can survive for weeks in water or dried sewage. These chronic carriers may have no symptoms and can be the source of new outbreaks of typhoid fever for many years.

How does the bacteria cause disease, and how is it diagnosed?

After the ingestion of contaminated food or water, the Salmonella bacteria invade the small intestine and enter the bloodstream temporarily. The bacteria are carried by white blood cells in the liver, spleen, and bone marrow. The bacteria then multiply in the cells of these organs and reenter the bloodstream. Patients develop symptoms, including fever, when the organism reenters the bloodstream. Bacteria invade the gallbladder, biliary system, and the lymphatic tissue of the bowel. Here, they multiply in high numbers. The bacteria pass into the intestinal tract and can be identified for diagnosis in cultures from the stool tested in the laboratory. Stool cultures are sensitive in the early and late stages of the disease but often must be supplemented with blood cultures to make the definite diagnosis.

What are the symptoms of typhoid fever?

The incubation period is usually one to two weeks, and the duration of the illness is about four to six weeks. The patient experiences

• poor appetite;
• abdominal pain;
• headaches;
• generalized aches and pains;
• fever, often up to 104 F;
• lethargy (usually only if untreated);
• intestinal bleeding or perforation (after two to three weeks of the disease);
• diarrhea or constipation.

People with typhoid fever usually have a sustained fever as high as 103 F-104 F (39 C-40 C).
Chest congestion develops in many patients, and abdominal pain and discomfort are common. The fever becomes constant. Improvement occurs in the third and fourth week in those without complications. About 10% of patients have recurrent symptoms (relapse) after feeling better for one to two weeks. Relapses are actually more common in individuals treated with antibiotics.