Anthrax (Milzbrand)

Anthrax is a bacterial infection that can be fatal. Pulmonary anthrax in particular ranks among the most dangerous infectious diseases of all — fast, aggressive, often lethal if not treated immediately. Then there is cutaneous anthrax, which manifests as black crusts and swelling, and the gastrointestinal form, which devastates the digestive tract with bloody diarrhea and sepsis. Medically, the pathogen — Bacillus anthracis — is well identified. Treatment is clear: immediate antibiotic therapy, intensive medical care, stabilization.