A new life threatening illness has been spreading through the streets of New York City. The culprit is an unhygienic staple of the city.
In the past year, 24 people have been infected by leptospirosis through deadly rat pee. This all time high spread of the bacterial infection has city officials concerned for the health of the city.
What Rat Pee Has To Do With It
The illness is currently being spread through rats who shed the bacteria through their urine. The process is beneficial for the rats who can get rid of the illness easily.
However, once contracted in humans, leptospirosis can be incredibly deadly.
Symptoms of Leptospirosis
The illness comes with a variety of symptoms that are incredibly concerning to public health.
The NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene reports that symptoms related to the illness might accompany fever, headache, chills, vomiting, diarrhea, red eyes, and jaundice.
Prevention of the Illness
One of the easiest ways to protect yourself from the illness is to stay away from rat infested areas.
For New Yorkers, avoiding rats can be a difficult task as they seem to occupy every corner of the city. High traffic areas, such as the subway and alleyways can be the easiest places to avoid.
New York Officials Are Suggesting Outdoor Only Clothes
While it’s already common knowledge that wearing outside shoes into your house can track diseases and viruses, New York officials are now suggesting that people also strip down from their outside clothes once inside.
Just as shoes can bring in bacteria, jackets and pants are also known to be carriers of germs.
New York City Losing Its Battle With Rats
In recent years, New York has attempted to combat the ever-increasing rat population.
Traps, culling, and poison have all been put to use to quell the almost 3 million rodents living inside of the city.
Mayor Eric Adams Has Created a New Initiative
Although the population has been steadily growing since 2010, Mayor Eric Adams think that he will be able to squash the population once and for all.
As outrageous as it might sound, the city of New York has implemented rat birth control. Distributed in rat infested areas in the form of food pellets, rat birth control will attempt to sterilize female rats from reproducing.
The Illness Thrives During Warm Temperatures
The disease itself is said to be incredibly “fragile” by the NYC health department. It can’t survive in exceedingly cold or hot temperatures.
However, during fall and spring, the temps are just right for the virus to thrive and pass from the ground onto travelers clothing. Most cases present between June and October.
City Officials Are Warning the Public
In a health advisory sent throughout the city last week, officials advised both health officials and the public to remain aware of the symptoms.
When treated early, the disease poses less of a risk to the public. Mild to moderate symptoms can be treated with common oral antibiotics to quell the illness.
Exceedingly Long Infection Timeline
The mildest symptoms, such as red eyes and fever, can present anywhere between 5 and 14 days after exposure.
The worst symptoms are said to take as long as 30 days to present in the host. Unfortunately, a person could be ill and spread the disease for as long as a month before seeking treatment.
Men More Likely To Contract the Illness Than Women
Out of 98 cases presented between 2021 and 2023, 94% were men between 20 to 80 years old.
Six of those people had a fatal case. It’s unknown why men get leptospirosis more often than women. However, some officials speculate that the illness occurs most often in people working in areas infected by rats, such as construction in subway stations and sanitation workers.
New York Isn’t the Only City Affected
In recent years, the Netherlands reported a fatal case of the illness after a young man fell into a canal contaminated with rat urine.
Anyone can contract the illness at any time. Although transmission rates throughout humans remain low, the illness still needs to be taken seriously and treated as soon as possible.
