Common Illnesses and Diseases While Travelling and Backpacking  

 

Blue Green - Algae

The blue green-algae typically blooms during warm weather, and has recently become a seasonal phenomenon during hot summers, as it thrives in the brackish and increasingly polluted waters of the Baltic Sea. Young children and dogs are particularly sensitive to the algae called Nodularia spumigena but more commonly referred to as blue-green algae. The algae appear in the sea as strings of blue, green, or yellow scum or occasionally just murky, cloudy waters.
Nodularia spumigena does produce the heptoxin nodularin. It is most frequently seen blooming in the Baltic Sea July through September.

Manifestations: It can cause: flu-like symptoms:
• vomiting
• fever
• diarrhea
• nausea
• headaches
• itchy and burning skin
It is not life threatening.

Diagnosis and treatment: specific treatment is not available.

Avoid problems caused by the blue green-algae:
• be careful when swimming
• do not to swallow water
• shower afterwards


 

The contents above, from www.bestbackpackersinsurance.co.uk is for information purposes only and cannot substitute for professional health care or any other medical treatment. All users of this website with any health problems should always consult their medical doctor or go directly to a hospital or clinic in their destination before starting any treatment.