Psittacosis is an infectious disease transmitted by birds and enters the body through the respiratory route.
All birds can be affected by psittacosis, but psittaciformes (parrots) are the most prone to suffer from it and therefore to transmit it.
Pigeons can also be carriers, although it is not common for them to get sick. "These are birds that do not usually raise an alarm, but sometimes 50% of the individuals in their populations are carriers."
Psittacosis "owes its name to the parrots, a family of birds that includes parrots, parakeets and parrots since this is the group that suffers the most from the disease," says a study "Review of ornithological zoonoses", prepared by several scientists from the Autonomous University of Nuevo León, in Mexico. However, this pathology is colloquially known as parrot fever.
Birds that suffer from it have "respiratory signs, hepatitis or a combination of both. They can also suffer pericarditis and in other cases the animal is simply sick without specific symptoms," says Montesinos.
Origin
This pathology is caused by a bacterium called Chlamydophila psittaci. Birds can contract it "when they are in contact with other sick birds or it is even postulated that a cat or a sick person could also infect a bird," affirms carriers.
Moderately Severe
Psittacosis is a "moderately severe" disease, however, there can be serious pictures with very important pneumonias that require intubation and admission to an intensive care unit.
Systemic pictures can also occur with heart involvement.
Doctors clarify that this pathology can be fatal, although it is not usual. As a general rule, the disease usually responds well to treatment.
In humans it produces from mild clinical pictures, which resemble a gnipe, to pneumonia and systemic pictures
It can be deadly.
