Early this morning
"Hangzhou girl cleans up moldy wardrobe lung mold"
's topic rushed to the first place in the hot search on Weibo
aroused heated discussions among netizens
Here's the thing
Ms. Wang (pseudonym) living in Hangzhou
I didn't expect that
I just cleaned up at home
I was actually admitted to the hospital
When I checked the lungs, it turned out to be "moldy".
Repeated high fever and hard carrying for 3 days
"Little tree buds" grow out of the lungs
A week ago, Ms. Wang (not her real name), who lives in Hangzhou, developed a cough, fatigue and fever.
At first, she thought it was a common cold, and she just needed to take some fever medicine at home, but she didn't expect that after three days, she still had a recurrent high fever, reaching a maximum of 40 °C.
When her friend saw that she was not good, she was quickly sent to the nearby Affiliated Hospital of Hangzhou Normal University.
Chief physician Zhou Xiang of the Department of Infectious Diseases (Hepatology) found from the CT scan of her lungs that Ms. Wang's lungs had grown "small tree buds", which was suspected to be fungal pneumonia.
Why does mold grow in the lungs?
She remembered a detail
A month ago, Ms. Wang noticed that there were mold spots in the wardrobe at home, so she cleaned the moldy parts but did not do a good job of protection.
After the cleaning, she developed paroxysmal cough, but the degree was relatively mild, so it was not taken seriously.
In order to further confirm the condition, Zhou Xiang performed a flexible bronchoscopy for Ms. Wang, and sure enough, he found a large number of white plaques on the airway wall, which was confirmed to be Aspergillus after laboratory tests.
Zhou Xiang judged that it was very likely that various molds were mixed into the dust. Ms. Wang usually likes to open the windows day and night for ventilation, just as the weather in the south warms up in May, the rain is continuous, and the humid air is a natural condition conducive to the growth of mold. Mold can cause infections in the lungs, mouth, skin, and even the whole body. People with allergies can also cause allergic reactions when inhaled.
What are the dangers of mold?
How to get rid of mold?
Mold is a special fungus that can cause mildew reactions, and is listed as a class I carcinogen by the World Health Organization. Mold is a type of microorganism that multiplies rapidly in a warm and humid environment, and can easily grow in the corners of the ceiling of penthouses, on the walls near air conditioners, under sinks, and around toilets.
Internationally recognized carcinogen
Chest and back pain, recurrent coughing, and inhalation of large amounts of mold may cause a "fungal infection of the lungs". At this time, there is often a lot of mold in the home.
Wang Lianglu, deputy chief physician of the allergy department of Peking Union Medical College Hospital, said in a program that mold is a strong carcinogen, listed as a first-class carcinogen by the World Health Organization, and is 68 times more toxic than arsenic. Mold has the ability to teratize, teratogenicity is mainly for pregnant women, if pregnant women are more exposed to this toxin, it may cause fetal malformations and even lead to miscarriage, in animal experiments found that this substance can cause malformations and miscarriages in mice. In addition, mold can cause allergies, and the severe allergic reactions it causes can lead to death.
According to Wang Lianglu, common molds are: Alternaria and C. cladospores, which are the most common in the air in Beijing, which can cause allergies, allergic rhinitis, and even asthma; Penicillium, which is common on moldy foods, can cause respiratory allergies; Aspergillus flavus is common in moldy grains, such as yellow rice grains in grains and bitter peanuts with hala flavor and bitterness, which can cause liver cancer; Aspergillus fumigatus, which can cause allergies, infections, and fungal pneumonia.
A multicenter retrospective study of the epidemiological analysis of fungal infections in mainland China published in the Journal of Medicine of Peking Union Medical College showed that Aspergillus spp. accounted for the highest proportion of infections at 84.8%, followed by fungal infections such as Fusarium, Mucormycetes and Sedosporium, and lower respiratory tract, ear, eye and skin infections were more common among the common infectious diseases caused by molds.
Image source: Peking Union Medical College Medical Journal WeChat public account
Harboring mold
There are three main areas of surprise
Southern cities are prone to mold growth due to their humid climate. But in fact, mold is everywhere as part of the natural environment. In a warm and dry condition, mold only floats in the air. Once it encounters water, it comes back to life in an instant and continues to multiply.
"Global warming, combined with an environment with high carbon dioxide concentrations due to carbon emissions, is also good for mold growth." Ma Yanliang, chief physician of the Department of Respiratory Medicine of Peking University People's Hospital, once said in an interview with the media.
It is understood that many household items can provide nutrients to mold and help mold settle down, such as wood, wallpaper, gypsum board, carpets, fabrics, etc. When humidity > 75%, temperatures between 20 and 35 degrees Celsius, and organic matter as a nutrient base for growth, mold spores grow hyphae or branches. As mold grows, it also emits volatile organic compounds, which are musty odors that we can smell.
Wang Lianglu reminded that there are three unexpected areas for hiding mold, the first is the seasoning, the second is the sealing strip of the refrigerator, and the third is the washing machine.
elderly patients and other populations
Minimize mold exposure
Studies have shown that patients with hematologic malignancies, organ transplants, cancer chemotherapy patients, long-term immunosuppressants, long-term broad-spectrum antimicrobial drugs, intensive care unit patients, elderly patients, and patients with severe viral or bacterial infections are at high risk, so it is important to minimize mold exposure.
The clinical symptoms of fungal infections are often atypical, and symptoms alone do not determine whether a mold infection is present. According to experts, the first choice is to deal with mold culture, if there are symptoms of lung infection, the best specimen to send for testing is alveolar lavage fluid, fibroscopic sputum specimen culture, can quickly and truly culture pathogenic bacteria. In addition, it includes serum antibody testing, targeted sequencing of respiratory pathogens, and mass spectrometry identification and imaging.
What can I do to prevent mold infection? Experts suggest that everyone should wear a mask as much as possible during the cleaning process, wear long clothes and trousers, change clothes as soon as possible after cleaning, and avoid direct contact with mold or patients to reduce the risk of airborne transmission. Pay attention to personal and environmental hygiene, and avoid or reduce contact with moldy food or items. Put some insect and mildew prevention products in the wardrobe, shoe cabinet, bookcase, and bathroom, such as mothballs, activated charcoal, etc.
In terms of diet, it is also necessary to pay attention to the fact that in addition to cooking food thoroughly, it should also be stored at an appropriate temperature, and when the food is moldy, it should be discarded decisively. At the same time, exercise more, improve your own immunity, maintain good lifestyle habits, and actively treat chronic diseases.