Certain disease conditions, age brackets, and occupations increase the risk of contracting whitlow. Some of these risk factors are more prevalent in Africa due to the various healthcare challenges.
Let us look at some specific examples to see why the risk of contracting herpetic whitlow is higher in certain situations.
HSV-1 is the most common cause of herpetic whitlow in children. [1] Activities such as finger licking, biting, and suckling can introduce this virus to their fingers particularly if there is an opening caused by bites in the finger.
Doctors, nurses, and other healthcare personnel are exposed to occupational hazards such as the risk of contracting herpetic whitlow due to their constant contact with their patients' mucous membranes.
Having multiple sexual partners
HSV-2 is the most common cause of sexually transmitted infection worldwide. [2] This puts a sexually adventurous person at high risk of contracting the disease.
Co-occurring diseases like diabetes mellitus weaken the immune system [6] making it hard for your body to fight off disease causing organisms like herpes. While this does not always increase the likelihood of contracting the disease, it frequently leads to a recurrence of the illness; the same is true for HIV.
Chronic stress, anxiety, poor diet, smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, and poor sleep are all contributors to immune deficiency, which in turn can raise the risk for herpetic whitlow. [7]
Aggressive manicuring with unintentional damage to the nail cuticle and manicuring with unclean instruments increase the risk of herpes infection of the fingernail. Women who wear artificial nails frequently may also have increased risk of whitlow.
Due to the high burden of herpes simplex virus in low and middle income countries like in sub-Saharan Africa, [2, 8] and overall personal and public health challenges in the region, Africans may be considered to be at higher risk for herpetic whitlow than nationals of middle to high income countries. Studies are needed to confirm this consideration..
Confirmed diagnosis of herpetic whitlow may be difficult to make based solely on physical examination of infected fingernails, as other disease conditions such as felon and bacteria whitlow mimic the symptoms and physical appearance of herpetic whitlow.
As a result, some special tests may be needed to identify viral particles or DNA in order to make a specific diagnosis of herpetic whitlow. This is not often necessary for this self-limiting condition as healthcare providers can reasonably diagnose herpetic whitlow based on the appearance of typical viral vesicles, blistering, redness, swelling and pain that is common with herpes simplex infections.
Related:
What you nails say about your health (Slideshow)
Published: July 17, 2024
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