Where There Is No Doctor 2011 189
Signs of typhoid:
First week:
• It begins like a cold or flu.
• Headache, sore throat, and often a
dry cough.
• The fever goes up and down, but rises
a little more each day until it reaches
40° or more.
• Pulse is often relatively slow for the
amount of fever present. Take the
pulse and temperature every half hour.
If the pulse gets slower when the
fever goes up, the person probably
has typhoid (see p. 26).
• Sometimes there is vomiting, diarrhea,
or constipation.
1st day
2nd day
3rd day
4th day
5th day
6th day
37½° C
38°
38½°
39°
39½°
40°
Second week:
• High fever, pulse relatively slow.
• A few pink spots may appear on the body.
• Trembling.
• Delirium (person does not think clearly
or make sense).
• Weakness, weight loss, dehydration.
Third week:
• If there are no complications,
the fever and other symptoms
slowly go away.
Treatment:
♦ Seek medical help.
♦ Give ciprofloxacin (p. 356), chloramphenicol (p. 356), ampicillin (p. 352), or
cotrimoxazole (p. 357). Ask a health worker which medicine works best where
you live.
♦ Lower the fever with cool wet cloths (see p. 76).
♦ Give plenty of liquids: soups, juices, and Rehydration Drink to avoid dehydration
(see p. 152).
♦ Give nutritious foods, in liquid form if necessary.
♦ The person should stay in bed until the fever is completely gone.
♦ If the person shits blood or develops signs of peritonitis (p. 94) or pneumonia
(p. 171), take her to a hospital at once.
Prevention:
♦ To prevent typhoid, care must be taken to avoid contamination of water and
food by human feces. Follow the guidelines of personal and public hygiene in
Chapter 12. Make and use latrines. Be sure latrines are a safe distance from
where people get drinking water.
♦ Cases of typhoid often appear after a flood or other disaster, and special care
must be taken with cleanliness at these times. Be sure drinking water is clean.
If there are cases of typhoid in your village, all drinking water should be boiled.
Look for the cause of contaminated water or food.
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