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Psittacosis
(ornithosis, parrot fever)
What is psittacosis?
Psittacosis is an infectious disease usually transmitted to humans from
birds in the parrot family, turkeys and pigeons. It is caused by a bacteria
called Chlamydia psittaci.
Who gets psittacosis?
Since this disease is spread by birds in the parrot family, it is occasionally
found in pet store workers and people who have recently purchased an infected
bird. It may also be found in farmers and slaughterhouse workers who process
turkeys.
How is psittacosis spread?
Psittacosis is usually spread by inhaling dust from dried droppings
from bird cages and by handling infected birds in slaughterhouses. Human
to human spread has not been reported. Waste material in the bird cage
may remain infectious for weeks.
What are the symptoms of psittacosis?
In humans, the symptoms are fever, headache, chills and sometimes pneumonia.
In birds, the symptoms include poor appetite, ruffled appearance, eye
or nose discharge and diarrhea. Occasionally, birds may die from psittacosis.
How soon after infection do symptoms appear?
The incubation period may range from four to 15 days but is usually
10 days.
How is psittacosis diagnosed?
In humans, the diagnosis can be made by special blood antibody tests.
In birds, veterinarians can diagnose the infection by conducting a special
chlamydia test on a swab of fecal material.
Does past infection with psittacosis make a person immune?
Infection does not provide permanent immunity from this disease.
What is the treatment for psittacosis?
Antibiotics such as tetracycline are often prescribed. Teteracycline
is effective in both humans and birds.
What can be the effect of not being treated for psittacosis?
The disease may be severe, and result in a high death rate especially
in untreated older people.
What can be done to prevent the spread of psittacosis?
If birds are kept as pets, clean the cage often so that fecal material
does not accumulate, dry up and become airborne. Current laws require
that members of the parrot family that are imported from foreign countries
be kept in a bird quarantine station prior to sale. During the quarantine,
they are given feed containing tetracycline to reduce the risk of infection,
but the duration of treatment is generally shorter than the 45 days necessary
to completely treat the bird. Therefore, federal health authorities have
recently recommended that breeders and importers ensure that all domestic
nestlings and imported birds receive the special tetracycline feed for
45 continuous days in order to prevent the spread of psittacosis from
birds to humans.
Source: NY State Department of Health
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