Etiology of Disease and the Practitioner: Potential Common Natural Disease Processes

    As the year progresses, the probability of contacting flu becomes greater. We, as professional embalmers, are more susceptible to respiratory infections which are associated with the handling of the dead human body. The use of PPE is essential because of the nature of the death.
    Specific causes of death are not always known. Opportunistic organisms are unknown factors. Special emphasis should be used by treating the mouth with a disinfectant spray and cotton swabs. Cover the mouth with an ear loop mask to protect yourself from pathogens expelled from the lungs during handling and positioning of the body.
    As embalmers, everyday exposure to common infections weakens and compromises the immune system. Unknowingly, at least a third of the deaths we handle are due to infectious diseases. Flu may be a leading cause of death as life expectancy increases. Common sense may be our best defense against common everyday exposure to these infections. The key to prevention is frequent hand washing with a disinfectant soap.
    Rare in the United States is the plague caused by Yersinia Pestis Bacillus. This plague occurs in three forms: bubonic, septicemic and pneumonic. Plague bacilli is highly pathogenic in many other animals beside rats. Bubonic plague bacilli can penetrate skin and move into the bloodstream causing septicemia. Hemorrhages produce black blotches in the skin. Pneumonic plague is a highly virulent manifestation of bronchopneumonia and the bacilli are abundant in the sputum. A 5% phenol disinfectant or a 2% amphyl solution is used as an oral disinfectant when poured into the bronchial tube. This procedure will prevent any respiratory complications.
    Bronchopneumonia occurs frequently in the aged following chronic bronchitis, whooping cough and cancer. If acquired in a medical environment, it may be referred to as a nosocomial infection caused by staphylococci, streptococci and pneumococci. The infection is spread after death by the expulsion of air from the lungs during removal, handling of the remains or positioning on the preparation table. During life this infection can be spread by coughing. An ear loop mask may be used on the deceased and/or the embalmer.
    Primary atypical pneumonia may be caused by a variety of viruses following influenza. The influenza virus is inhaled and spreads into the sinuses and down the trachea and bronchi. The fluid in the alveoli tube prevents the exchange of carbon dioxide for oxygen causing a graying (cyanotic) of the skin. Pre-analysis will indicate the need for usage of a capillary wash and cosmetic arterial preservative or dyes.
    Complications associated with various lung diseases cause pleurisy (an infection associated with pneumonia), tuberculosis and cancer. Congested pleura of the pleural cavity caused atelectasis (collapsed lung) filled with pus.
    Tuberculosis, once known as the embalmer’s disease, was contracted by the inhalation of infectious materials while handling the body (mycobacterium). Tuberculosis is primarily a disease of the lungs but can attack the kidneys, brain, bones and spine (Pott’s disease). Individuals who live in crowded conditions, are poorly nourished, and overworked with possible alcoholic tendencies are more susceptible to the tubercle bacilli. Sectional aspiration of the body cavities with the diaphragm as a barrier between the abdominal and thoracic cavities will prevent cross contamination.
    Part 14 will deal with the treatment of communicable and infectious diseases which affect the various body systems.