What to know about melioidosis, the rare disease just uncovered on the Mississippi Coast

The bacteria causing melioidosis, a rare tropical infectious disease, is endemic on the Mississippi Gulf Coast has people asking questions about whether they should be worried.

The infections were found in two men living 10 miles apart in a Coast county, and they are the first known cases in the U.S.

Here’s everything you need to know.

Who is most likely to contract rare bacteria?

B. pseudomallei, the bacteria that causes melioidosis, thrives in warm, moist soil and freshwater. Infections usually occur through cuts in the skin by direct contact with contaminated soil or water. The disease is only very rarely transmitted from people to people.

The people who are most susceptible are those with the following conditions:

• diabetes
• chronic kidney disease
• chronic lung disease
• excessive alcohol use

Healthy people who come into contact with B. pseudomallei through the skin don’t usually contract melioidosis.

But in some cases, if contaminated soil is sufficiently disturbed by construction or a severe weather event, people can breathe the bacteria directly into their lungs.

When contracted through inhalation, melioidosis can affect a wider range of people, and you’re more likely to get it even if you don’t have the associated risk factors.

What are the symptoms of melioidosis, and how is it treated?

Melioidosis can present a wide array of symptoms, which can make it hard to diagnose.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) says symptoms include “fever, localized pain or swelling, ulceration, abscess, cough, chest pain, respiratory distress, weight loss, abdominal discomfort, muscle or joint pain, disorientation, headache, and seizures.”

The incubation period, or how long after exposure to the bacteria it takes for symptoms to present, is up to 21 days.

Melioidosis is resistant to common antibiotics regimens, but can be treated with intravenous antibiotics. Early diagnosis greatly decreases the disease’s mortality rates.

What should I do to avoid infection?

If you live on the Gulf Coast, and particularly if you are diabetic or have other underlying conditions that increase your risk of infection, the CDC recommends that you do the following:

• Avoid direct contact with soil or muddy water, particularly after heavy rain.
• Cover open wounds with waterproof bandages when doing gardening or working outdoors. If cuts or burns come into contact with soil, wash them.
• Wear footwear and gloves when doing yard work or agricultural work.
• Wear waterproof boots after flooding and storms.

Two melioidosis cases in Mississippi

Authorities have not identified or disclosed the specific location of the two Mississippi men whose infections, in 2020 and 2022, prompted the discovery that B. pseudomallei is endemic on the Coast.

A spokeswoman for the Mississippi State Department of Health, Liz Sharlot, told the Sun Herald in an email, “The bacteria were isolated in samples taken from the MS Gulf Coast. It is possible that the bacteria are present in the soil of the lower three Coastal counties, and it is extremely important for residents at higher risk take appropriate precautions, regardless of where they reside on the MS Gulf Coast.”

Julia Petras, the CDC epidemic intelligence service officer who led the investigation that identified melioidosis bacteria in Mississippi, told the Sun Herald that the two patients were 10 miles from each other, in “a coastal county,” and in an area that was “more rural than urban.”

Both patients had underlying conditions that put them at greater risk of contracting melioidosis.

After infection, the two men both had pneumonia and sepsis. They were treated with antibiotics and have recovered.

This story was originally published August 3, 2022 at 12:24 PM.