How to Recover from Yaws Disease
Treat it with antibiotics., If you are allergic to penicillin, take azithromycin, tetracycline, erythromycin or doxycycline., Maintain good personal hygiene., Get adequate nutrition., Look into home remedies., Consider examination and treatment for...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Treat it with antibiotics.
Penicillin is the preferred drug for yaws.The World Health Organization recommends Benzathine penicillin at
1.2 million units (adult) and 600,000 units (children).
For the early stage of the disease, a single dose of penicillin is sufficient to cure the disease.
The skin lesion will heal within one or two weeks.
In the tertiary stage, 3 weekly injections are required for several months.
Your doctor will determine the actual duration.
See a doctor for confirmation that you have yaws.
Diagnosis of the disease is confirmed by laboratory tests like TPHA, RPR and direct visualization of the organism under microscope. -
Step 2: If you are allergic to penicillin
There are plenty of alternatives at your disposal.
The dosages are as follows:
Tetracycline is give at 500 mg tablet every 6 hours for 15 days Erythromycin is given at 8 mg/kg to 10 mg/kg every 6 hours for 15 days Doxycycline is given at 100 mg tablet every 12 hours for 15 days Azithromycin is given at 30 mg/kg as a single dose per mouth to a maximum dose of 2 grams , Skin lesions frequently ulcerate and thus become prone to infection.
Infected ulcers lead to more destruction of tissue and scarring.
So try your best to remain neat and clean.
Open ulcers also shed organisms of yaws disease that can infect other persons in contact.
Keep the ulcers and skin lesions dry as much as possible.
Wet surfaces tend to get infected easily.
Use loose and comfortable clothes to allow adequate ventilation.
Tight clothes can impede blood supply to the affected area which delays healing.
Only use mild soaps.
Soap is an irritant and any irritation delays healing.
This is why you should use soap as little as possible.
If possible, use liquid bath soap which is less irritating. , Recovery from any illness needs an extra supply of nutrients.
Protein is most important in healing a wound and to spur on the formation of new tissue.
Consume protein rich foods like milk, meat, eggs, etc.
Vitamin C is particularly important for collagen tissue formation which helps in healing ulcers and other wounds.
Lack of vitamin C may lead to bizarre healing that does not look natural.
Eat vitamin C rich foods like lemon, peppers, guavas, berries, tomatoes, etc. , There are a few things found in nature that may help your case.
Consider the following:
Use katuk leaf locally.
It is an excellent herbal remedy to expedite ulcer healing.
Rub the pulps on the affected area twice daily to get optimum result.
Make a decoction of kale roots.
It has high vitamin C content and other natural ingredients that promote wound healing.
Take the decoction twice daily to get best result.
Use turmeric and nutmeg.
This mixture is a strong herbal tonic for yaws disease.
Blend turmeric and nutmeg powder with coconut oil and apply the paste on the sores twice daily. , Since yaws are easily transmitted through skin contact, it is best to let the people that live in your household get tested for yaws as well as take the treatment if they are infected.
Treated areas which are previously endemic for yaws should be reexamined within 6 months and at intervals there after so that missed cases and their contacts can be treated. , There is 100% cure rate among yaws patients in the early stages of this disease.
Nevertheless, treatment cannot reverse or change the destructive or damaged changes in the late or tertiary stage of yaws.
Here are the specifics:
Yaws lesions become non-contagious within 24 hours from the start of treatment.Joint pains resolve in 25 hours to 48 hours of treatment.
Complete healing of the initial and secondary lesions occur within two weeks to four weeks from start of treatment. , It begins by the organism entering the body through a skin defect such as a bite site, abrasion or scratch.
After about 3 weeks a reddish, painless and itchy small swelling develops at the entry site.
The primary lesion heals spontaneously after 3-6 months.
Yaws has an incubation period of 9 days to 90 days followed by the appearance of this primary papule, called the mother yaws.The swelling then ulcerates with a honey-brown crust formation.
The ulcer may enlarge in size to about 2–5 centimeter (0.8–2.0 in).
The crust sloughs out to expose a reddish base.
The discharge from the ulcer is rich in organisms rendering the patient highly infectious. , There is a gap of 6-16 weeks between the primary and secondary stages.
During this period the organisms spread via the blood to different parts of the body.
There are skin lesions similar to primary yaws but they are smaller in size (maximum 2cm).
They tend to develop around the mouth, nose, axilla and anus.
These lesions also ulcerate and discharge infectious fluid.
They heal spontaneously within 6 months.
There may be painful swelling of bone surfaces particularly hand and foot bones. , After the secondary lesions heal, the patient becomes non-infectious and symptom free.
There are no skin or bony lesions.
This stage may last for the rest of the life.
However, there may be recurrence of the skin problems at an interval of up to 5 years., Destructive lesions may develop after 5-15 years of latency.
In this stage skin, bones, nerves and eyes may be affected.
Skin lesions begin as painless, enlarging and firm swelling that ultimately ulcerate.Large ulcers may join with one another to form an elongated ulcer.
When the ulcer heals, massive fibrous tissue forms that contract the skin.
This may lead to crippling deformities and ugly appearance of the affected area.
Bony lesions are known as osteitis, periostitis and osteomyelitis.
The end result is bone destruction with development of deformity.
Nasal bone destruction may cause perforation of the nose and palate.
This stage is not contagious and occurs in 10% of untreated yaws patients. -
Step 3: take azithromycin
-
Step 4: tetracycline
-
Step 5: erythromycin or doxycycline.
-
Step 6: Maintain good personal hygiene.
-
Step 7: Get adequate nutrition.
-
Step 8: Look into home remedies.
-
Step 9: Consider examination and treatment for the people around you.
-
Step 10: Know how treatment progresses.
-
Step 11: Recognize the primary stage.
-
Step 12: Recognize the secondary stage.
-
Step 13: Recognize the latent stage.
-
Step 14: Recognize the tertiary stage.
Detailed Guide
Penicillin is the preferred drug for yaws.The World Health Organization recommends Benzathine penicillin at
1.2 million units (adult) and 600,000 units (children).
For the early stage of the disease, a single dose of penicillin is sufficient to cure the disease.
The skin lesion will heal within one or two weeks.
In the tertiary stage, 3 weekly injections are required for several months.
Your doctor will determine the actual duration.
See a doctor for confirmation that you have yaws.
Diagnosis of the disease is confirmed by laboratory tests like TPHA, RPR and direct visualization of the organism under microscope.
There are plenty of alternatives at your disposal.
The dosages are as follows:
Tetracycline is give at 500 mg tablet every 6 hours for 15 days Erythromycin is given at 8 mg/kg to 10 mg/kg every 6 hours for 15 days Doxycycline is given at 100 mg tablet every 12 hours for 15 days Azithromycin is given at 30 mg/kg as a single dose per mouth to a maximum dose of 2 grams , Skin lesions frequently ulcerate and thus become prone to infection.
Infected ulcers lead to more destruction of tissue and scarring.
So try your best to remain neat and clean.
Open ulcers also shed organisms of yaws disease that can infect other persons in contact.
Keep the ulcers and skin lesions dry as much as possible.
Wet surfaces tend to get infected easily.
Use loose and comfortable clothes to allow adequate ventilation.
Tight clothes can impede blood supply to the affected area which delays healing.
Only use mild soaps.
Soap is an irritant and any irritation delays healing.
This is why you should use soap as little as possible.
If possible, use liquid bath soap which is less irritating. , Recovery from any illness needs an extra supply of nutrients.
Protein is most important in healing a wound and to spur on the formation of new tissue.
Consume protein rich foods like milk, meat, eggs, etc.
Vitamin C is particularly important for collagen tissue formation which helps in healing ulcers and other wounds.
Lack of vitamin C may lead to bizarre healing that does not look natural.
Eat vitamin C rich foods like lemon, peppers, guavas, berries, tomatoes, etc. , There are a few things found in nature that may help your case.
Consider the following:
Use katuk leaf locally.
It is an excellent herbal remedy to expedite ulcer healing.
Rub the pulps on the affected area twice daily to get optimum result.
Make a decoction of kale roots.
It has high vitamin C content and other natural ingredients that promote wound healing.
Take the decoction twice daily to get best result.
Use turmeric and nutmeg.
This mixture is a strong herbal tonic for yaws disease.
Blend turmeric and nutmeg powder with coconut oil and apply the paste on the sores twice daily. , Since yaws are easily transmitted through skin contact, it is best to let the people that live in your household get tested for yaws as well as take the treatment if they are infected.
Treated areas which are previously endemic for yaws should be reexamined within 6 months and at intervals there after so that missed cases and their contacts can be treated. , There is 100% cure rate among yaws patients in the early stages of this disease.
Nevertheless, treatment cannot reverse or change the destructive or damaged changes in the late or tertiary stage of yaws.
Here are the specifics:
Yaws lesions become non-contagious within 24 hours from the start of treatment.Joint pains resolve in 25 hours to 48 hours of treatment.
Complete healing of the initial and secondary lesions occur within two weeks to four weeks from start of treatment. , It begins by the organism entering the body through a skin defect such as a bite site, abrasion or scratch.
After about 3 weeks a reddish, painless and itchy small swelling develops at the entry site.
The primary lesion heals spontaneously after 3-6 months.
Yaws has an incubation period of 9 days to 90 days followed by the appearance of this primary papule, called the mother yaws.The swelling then ulcerates with a honey-brown crust formation.
The ulcer may enlarge in size to about 2–5 centimeter (0.8–2.0 in).
The crust sloughs out to expose a reddish base.
The discharge from the ulcer is rich in organisms rendering the patient highly infectious. , There is a gap of 6-16 weeks between the primary and secondary stages.
During this period the organisms spread via the blood to different parts of the body.
There are skin lesions similar to primary yaws but they are smaller in size (maximum 2cm).
They tend to develop around the mouth, nose, axilla and anus.
These lesions also ulcerate and discharge infectious fluid.
They heal spontaneously within 6 months.
There may be painful swelling of bone surfaces particularly hand and foot bones. , After the secondary lesions heal, the patient becomes non-infectious and symptom free.
There are no skin or bony lesions.
This stage may last for the rest of the life.
However, there may be recurrence of the skin problems at an interval of up to 5 years., Destructive lesions may develop after 5-15 years of latency.
In this stage skin, bones, nerves and eyes may be affected.
Skin lesions begin as painless, enlarging and firm swelling that ultimately ulcerate.Large ulcers may join with one another to form an elongated ulcer.
When the ulcer heals, massive fibrous tissue forms that contract the skin.
This may lead to crippling deformities and ugly appearance of the affected area.
Bony lesions are known as osteitis, periostitis and osteomyelitis.
The end result is bone destruction with development of deformity.
Nasal bone destruction may cause perforation of the nose and palate.
This stage is not contagious and occurs in 10% of untreated yaws patients.
About the Author
Victoria Griffin
A passionate writer with expertise in pet care topics. Loves sharing practical knowledge.
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