Vicks VapoRub: Smell Good while Avoiding Antibiotics

It seems like several of my friends and acquaintances have some sort of viral illness, either gastrointestinal or respiratory in nature. 

Currently, we are in the midst of influenza season with reports that H1N1 is again causing severe disease--some of which I have seen myself in the ICU.

Along with influenza, other respiratory viruses such as RSV are circulating and capable of causing mild or even severe illness. While there are antivirals available for influenza, there isn't much to do for the other viruses.

Today, I was asked by one of my friends what he should do for chest congestion.

I said "How, about a Z-Pak?"

Just kidding.

What I recommend is a combination of a few things:

• Ibuprofen or naproxen for fever, aches, pains, and headache
• DayQuil (or the generic version of it) for symptomatic relief of congestion, cough, etc.
• Vicks VapoRub

My friend employed Vicks VapoRub and seemed to immediately report improved symptoms. While anecdotal evidence is not trivial more robust data on the efficacy of Vicks VapoRub in improving sleep of sick children and their caregivers and symptoms (albeit in children) exists. 

My friend wanted to know how Vicks VapoRub work and I didn't really have a good answer so I did a little checking. 

The ingredients include menthol, camphor, and eucalyptus oil and the mechanism of action seems to stem from the ability of menthol to stimulate the TRPM8 channel resulting in improvements in respiration.

So, instead of reaching for antibiotics try VapoRub--you'll feel better and you'll smell better (that's not even considering antibiotic-associated diarrhea).

If VapoRub became the fragrance of the season, we would all be better off. 

Even Rudolph Can't Escape the 4th Horseman

Every organism is plagued with its own infectious diseases, many of which are specific to the species. Hamsters and gerbils don't get infected by exactly the same pathogens. With pets and other domestic animals, many of these microbes  have the capacity to jump to humans and cause a zoonotic infection,

Reindeer are no different.

Some reindeer infectious diseases, which likely impact the ability to engage in reindeer games, include:

 🎄 Reindeer Pest: high mortality infection with Clostridum septicum

🎄Necrobacillosis: severe hoof infection  

🎄Foot and Mouth Disease

🎄Lyme Disease

🎄Pasteurellosis

There also other myriad infections, including nematodes, that can be found in reindeer populations which have implications for reindeer meat intended for human consumption.

None of these diseases, however, is known to cause severe erythema of the nose so Rudolph's affliction will remain a mystery.

A Bacterium Fit for a Cadaver

Most of the time when I get consulted on a person with a bloodstream infection, the culprit organism is something totally ordinary like Staphylococcus aureus, E.coli, Streptococcus, etc. 

Sometimes, however, an unexpected organism is isolated (usually in an immunocompromised patient). A few days ago, one such rare organism reared its head in one of my patients.

The patient I saw had a history of recurrent pancreatic cancer and had developed a liver abscess. Blood cultures were also positive and revealed...Clostridium cadaveris. Interestingly, it wasn't found in the abscess fluid.

Judging by its name, it's clear that this organism has some connection with death. In fact, it is one of the most prominent bacteria involved in the decomposition of human bodies after death--not exactly something you want to have in your bloodstream while you're alive. However, this bacteria is not usually a pathogen and lives symbiotically as part of the normal resident flora of the intestine.

Reports of true infections with this bacteria involve immunocompromised patients (pancreatic cancer certainly qualified my patient for that designation) but cases have occurred in the immunocompetent as well. Given the context of my patient's overall condition, this has to be treated as a true infection.

In a way, the practice of infectious disease can be thought of as managing the delicate balance in the human body between peaceful co-existence with its microbial flora (the microbiome) and preventing a microbial insurgency from occurring. During the 2008 IDSA meeting, the visionary Dr. Arturo Casadevall describe infectious disease physicians of the future as microbiome management experts who "protect the symbiont" (see his piece from 1996). 

Seek and Find: Influenza and other Creatures

That the fatal cluster of respiratory illnesses in Texas is due to influenza doesn't come as a surprise. What is surprising is how such a cluster is headline grabbing. 

The poor ability to diagnose influenza is what causes clusters like this to fuel speculation regarding novel pathogens that might be responsible. However, perusing any tertiary care center's ICU one will undoubtedly be able to find some sort of cluster of unexplained severe pneumonia patients. 

Why are definitive microbiologic diagnoses elusive?

An ordinary pneumonia patient  admitted to the ICU might have the following two microbiologic tests performed:

• Blood cultures: only positive in 5-14% of cases
• Sputum gram stain and culture: only 40% of patients are able to produce sputum

Other tests that are variably performed include pneumococcal and legionella urinary antigen testing. Rapid influenza and RSV antigen testing, notably unreliable but helpful if positive, may also be done. PCR testing for multiple respiratory viruses, including influenza, is unfortunately the most rarely done, often relegated exclusively to tertiary care centers.

In sum, the majority of pneumonia patients undergo a minimal amount of testing leaving the great majority of patients without an identified pathogen--a great number of which are likely viral in nature. To minimize unexplained clusters of illness, diminish the amount of unnecessary antibiotic use, improve infection control (as respiratory viral infections merit contact and droplet precautions), and identify influenza cases that will benefit from antiviral therapy, it is our diagnostic capacity that must improve.

The Only Legit "Chickenpox Party"

Parents in the developed world no longer worry about their children contracting chickenpox (varicella) thanks to the chickenpox vaccine, available in the US since 1995 (20 years after it was introduced in other countries).

The man responsible for this life saving vaccine, Dr. Michiaki Takahashi, died on Monday (the same day as Monto Ho, who I wrote about it yesterday).

Prior to the introduction of this vaccine in the US, 4 million cases, up to 18,000 hospitalizations, and 150 deaths from chickenpox occurred annually. Now that the vaccine is in widespread use, these numbers have declined drastically.

However, the gains achieved by Dr. Takahasi's vaccine are currently under threat by those who, instead of availing themselves of the protection afforded by the vaccine, engage in "chickenpox parties" to knowingly expose their children to this pathogen.

I first heard of these "parties" while on a medical student rotation in England in 1999, before the vaccine was available in the UK. As a medical student I was completely baffled by this ritual then and, now, as an infectious disease physician my incredulity has exponentially increased. 

As someone who grew up prior to the vaccine's US introduction and contracted chickenpox in the 8th grade (much later than many of my classmates), I have a special affection for this vaccine.

The only party we should be having with respect to chickenpox is one in honor of Dr. Takahasi, celebrating his achievement and the benefit we all derive from it.