AIBU to report neighbours for typhoid

[Cinders29]

Hi,

So long story our neighbours moved in about 2 years ago. They're extremely messy - huge pond and trampoline and god knows what in the front, back garden has rabbits, dogs and about 50 chickens. Food everywhere , loads of outbuildings and isn't 'stuff everywhere' anyway - no real problem to us ( apart from when we tried to sell our house )

However, we've noticed over the last couple of years an increase in rats ( we live near fields so expected but they're encouraging them ) there are 1000s of what I believe to be rat holes into his garden from the field next door. Weve also seen cockroaches.

Anyway, my son became very poorly a few weeks ago and was admitted to hospital for 4 days. Turns out he had typhoid which is ridiculous in this county right? Anyway with him being at home etc I just don't know where on Earth this could have come from.

Google says it comes from cockroaches - does anyone the likelihood of this please ? Also - if we suspect should we report ? I'll be so angry if it's come from there but I don't wanna just go around accusing when it could possibly have come from somewhere else

Even if he has poked the cockroach, it's highly unlikely that the cockroaches in this country carry Typhoid

Yes - report them. There are other diseases these animals can bring too. (Weil’s disease, etc...)

Haven't read through the entire thread but yes, report.

Public / environmental health / local council.

Hope your son feels better soon.

Typhoid is a notifiable disease. If a doctor has diagnosed it, that doctor us obliged to report it to the responsible officer of the local authority.

Umm shouldn't he have been vaccinated against typhoid?

Only if he's travelled to a country where typhoid is endemic. It's not a routine vaccination in the UK.

...is obliged...

Weils disease? Usually through rat urine in water ... op please make sure your child is not swimming or paddling in the neighbour's pond....
www.rospa.com/leisure-safety/Water/Advice/Weils-Disease

Here is the process.

As long as you've told the doctors about the neighbours, they'll already be dealing with the contact tracing and whatnots.

It's a notify able disease isn't it? The hospital will have had to report. I don't think you can assume he got infected by ndn.

I was wondering about that too @Destroyedpeople - Salmonella typhi isn't endemic in this country, we get very few cases in my lab, and when we do it's generally from someone having traveled in an endemic area and it's a notifiable disease.

Highly unlikely that it would be picked up from a neighbour, cockroaches or not!

He got typhoid in the UK? The hospital didn't question you at all about it? Dear god, it's usually from dirty water and poor hygiene. I picked it up once in Mexico eating shellfish. They quarantined me in hospital and were immediately questioning where I'd been.

@SirTobyBelch - Doctors don't diagnose typhoid, the bacterium is grown and identified in a microbiology lab by biomedical scientists. Although some of us do have PhDs.

It's a notify able disease isn't it?

Is it? Oh I wish someone had said 🤣

Well didn't expect my knowledge of typhoid to increase tonight!

Aren't there more rats because wildlife is taking over while we're indoors?

Chickens and rats go together. Rats will nest under coops.

How have you seen cockroaches and where? Outside?

Notify environmental health to put your mind at ease. Did the hospital not ask where it was contracted?

Wow Typhoid I'm surprised your next door neughbours arent constantly sick if living next to them causes Typhoid!

Typhoid is very uncommon in the UK. If he did catch it from your neighbour’s animals he most likely got it from handling their faeces, which doesn’t seem likely?

Cholera! Next is cholera! Dodgy restaurant, shellfish, 'Yes, I'd like a typhoid salad and some cholera on the half shell, please.' Sure, madam, would you like our special of Hep A From Poorly Cooked Meat?

I got cholera from the local chip shop. Should I notify them?

My son had scarlet fever a couple of years back, a notifiable disease, we were questioned up and down about our movements and likely transmission location. Surely the hospital did this with you?

Typhoid vaccine is given prior to a visit to an endemic country not routinely.