Typhoid fever

Typhoid fever is a rare systemic human infection caused by a bacterium of the Salmonella genus. It is transmitted by the fecal-oral route. Clinically, it presents through a spectrum of severity encompassing a variety of symptoms and signs including fever, abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting, which differentiates it from other febrile and gastrointestinal illnesses. The "gold standard" diagnostic method for typhoid fever is culture of blood, bone marrow or other normally sterile site. Medical therapy with antibiotics is the first and main line of treatment. This disease can lead to serious complications such as intestinal perforation and gastrointestinal bleeding, which are often fatal, even if managed surgically. Failure to detect this condition early is associated with high morbidity and mortality rates.