Doctor, Doctor...
By Dave Hall
For all you hypochondriacs out there, Dave Hall continues his regular look at a some of the more unusual medical conditions, as well as some you thought you knew all about.
This week: DONOVANOSIS
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Condition – Not, as the name would suggest, an uncontrollable desire to sing Jason Donovan songs, but a very common bacterial disease, also known as granuloma inguinale, which often goes untreated. In a nut shell (no pun intended), it is a disease characterised by painless genital ulcers which appear about 10–40 days after contact with the bacteria. However, these then develop into fleshy pustules, which grow and lead to the destruction of internal and external tissue. This can lead to secondary infections as the sores leak blood and mucus - nice.
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Contagion – The bacteria are spread from one host to another very easily through sexual contact with the open sores. It is very contagious if you come into contact with someone who has the disease, and can be caught by men and women equally easily.
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| Danger of death – You’re unlikely to die, but you’ll probably wish you had when you look down. |  |
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Incurability? – The condition is treatable using antibiotics, where it usually subsides after about a week, although a full 12-week treatment course should be taken to avoid relapse.
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Likelihood of getting time off work – You probably wont want to walk painfully to work or sit down on a tube or bus with this disease. You’re more likely to be cursing your idiocy at copping off that rather insidious looking individual the other day.
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| Brag-ability – Not a chance, unless you’re trying to lose friends forever. |
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Overall ridiculousness – Far from crazy if you’re bits are falling off!! Definitely one to avoid. |
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More conditions to come soon:
Yellow Fever, Copenhagen disease and more.
Find more curious conditions in Doctor Doctor. If you can't wait for the next Doctor Doctor, then why not find a Phunny Phobia to keep you going?
Photo: John-Paul Stephenson/Wiki
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