Bacterial Diseases: Typhoid and Pneumonia

Typhoid and pneumonia are two important human diseases caused by bacteria, but they differ sharply in how they spread and which part of the body they primarily affect.

Typhoid fever is caused by the bacterium Salmonella typhi, and spreads through food or water contaminated with the faecal matter of an infected person — the classic faecal-oral route. Once swallowed, the bacteria multiply in the intestine and can enter the bloodstream, producing a sustained (continuous) high fever, general weakness, abdominal pain, headache, and a loss of appetite; constipation is more typical than diarrhoea in the early stages. Diagnosis is commonly supported by the Widal test, a blood test that detects antibodies against S. typhi antigens. Prevention depends heavily on safe drinking water, thorough food hygiene, hand-washing, and — importantly — vaccination against typhoid, which is recommended in regions where the disease is common. …