Are you
exposed to bat droppings and bird manure in your workplace? If so, you
may be a at risk for a diagnosis of Histoplasmosis.
Recently, I handled a case involving this disease.
Histoplasmosis
is an infectious disease caused by inhaling the spores of a fungus called H. capsulatum. Histoplasmosis
is not contagious; it cannot be transmitted from an infected person or
animal to someone else.
Histoplasmosis
has various symptoms, but primarily affects your lungs. The vast majority
of infected people have no visable side effects. Those who do experience mild
symptoms often don’t seek medical attention and may not even realize that their
illness was histoplasmosis.
Histoplasmosis
can appear as a mild, flu-like respiratory illness. The symptoms may
include a combination of malaise (generally feeling lousy), fever, chest
pain, dry cough, headache, loss of appetite, shortness of breath, joing and
muscle pains, chills, and hoarseness.
Don't be
lulled into believing that histoplasmosis is a harmless disease.
Histoplasmosis can cause chronic lung disease and worsen over time.
Special antifungal medications are needed to stop the disease, and surgery
is sometimes required to remove a portion of the affected lung.
A person
who has had histoplasmosis can get it again.
Anyone
working in a job or near activities where material which has been contaminated
with the Histoplasmosis spore can develop histoplasmosis, if enough spores are
inhaled.
After
exposure, the degree of sickness varies greatly, due to the number of spores
you may have inhaled, your ageyour susceptibility to the disease. Longer
durations and intensity of exposure significantly increase your risk of
developing histoplasmosis.
Below is
a partial list of occupations and hobbies with risks for
exposure to H. capsulatum spores, published by the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC):
· Bridge inspector or
painter
· Chimney cleaner
· Construction worker
· Demolition worker
· Farmer
· Gardener
· Heating/Air-conditioning
installer/service worker
· Pest Control worker
· Microbiology worker
· Restorer of historic
or abandoned buildings
· Roofer
· Cave explorer
The CDC has
also identified geographic areas in which there is a higher incidence of the
disease. Washington County and Greene County, in Pennsylvania, are
on the CDC map, along with parts of West Virginia and Ohio.
If you
engage in these activities and develop flu-like symptoms days or weeks after
disturbing material that might be contaminated with H. capsulatum, and the
illness worsens rather than subsides, you should seek medical care immediately.
If the
disease was contracted "in the course and scope" of your job, you are
entitled to lost wages and medical expenses you experience, under the
Pennsylvania Workers Compensation Act. If you think that you acquired Histoplasmosis
in the workplace, please call me for a legal consultation about your
rights. There is no legal fee unless we obtain a money recovery or
reimbursement of medical expenses incurred for you.
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Quatrini Rafferty - The Workers' Compensation Group
Helping injured workers across Pennsylvania from our offices in Greensburg, Pittsburgh and Latrobe
