Chronic Typhoid and Malaria!

Typhoid and Malaria are two disease entities that most Nigerians or should i say Lagosians are proud to claim as their own. Anytime anyone walks into my office and has a fever I can be sure that when I ask the question 'what is wrong with you?' The answer I will receive is usually 'I have typhoid and Malaria'! To make matters worse, they usually come armed with Laboratory results from some Lab trying to make a quick buck to substantiate their bogus claims.

Of course they are sure to have a Widal's test done to complete the picture and confirm their disease! I have unsuccessfully tried to explain so many times that a Widal's test is not proof that you have typhoid fever. Its foolhardy trying to explain as you will probably come down with the label of a doctor that doesn't know his onions, since almost every private clinic orders a Widal's test to prove that their patients have typhoid fever. Its a waste of time trying to explain to them that with our water system the way it is a significant titre on one test is not proof enough that you have the disease. Try telling them that the Widals is actually a serial test is a sure indication that this doctor has some screws loose!

I have seen patients with typhoid fever and my explanation to those who claim typhoid is that they should not claim bad things for themselves. We have a culture of treating malaria shoddily. I have a temperature, headache, bitter taste in my mouth and I swallow the nearest antimalarial I can get, If in two days the symptoms still persist I switch to another drug and you can trust that the drugs in the market are as wonderful as the disease they are supposed to cure. If my patient is a child the treatment for malaria is even worse. The mothers come in convinced their child has typhoid and when you ask what treatment has been administered, they begin to reel off a litany of obviously inappropriate drugs- bonababe, paracetamol, etc.

If you ask me malaria parasites have no known history of conversion to salmonella typhi the causative organism of typhoid fever. The moral of the story is when coming to see me, please don't say you have malaria and typhoid, even worse do not mention chronic typhoid. Please don't ask me to run a Widal's test for you, unless you want to have it done serially (which would be done over a period of weeks) and if you truly have typhoid you will be much worse. Typhoid fever is not your portion:) Amen.

Comments

  1. laspapi5:45 PM

    What you wrote should be made compulsory reading for the whole of this country. You hear people stating they have typhoid as if its a minor headache. I did a Masters in Humanitarian & Refugee Studies at Unilag and one of the things the Doctors who taught Community Health stated was that the test/diagnosis for Typhoid in our country isnt even agreed on by all doctors. It therefore baffles me when every non-medical person I know, states nonchalantly, "I have chronic typhoid".

    ReplyDelete
  2. Unknown11:51 AM

    which pharma is taken if the patient is suffering from salmonella typhi and malarial parasites

    ReplyDelete
  3. Unknown5:18 AM

    nice piece..

    ReplyDelete
  4. olaoluwatomi11:15 AM

    @Laspapi- Its seems to be a status thing, a badge to wear proudly on your chest! "I have typhoid fever'
    @Mustafa- you should see your doctor~
    @Kimberly- thank you

    ReplyDelete

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