Leptospirosis: Introduction

Welcome to the introductory-level online course on leptospirosis, a bacterial zoonosis transmitted via contact with rodents, domestic animals and contaminated water. The disease is an emerging public health problem. This introductory level online course aims to equip frontline responders with introductory-level knowledge to manage outbreaks of leptospirosis. It offers the most relevant scientific, technical and operational knowledge through video presentations and self-tests.

**Please note: This course was developed in 2018. For the latest updates, please refer to the relevant health topics on the WHO website.

Course information

La version française de ce cours est disponible sur : https://openwho.org/courses/leptospirose-fr

Overview: Leptospirosis is both a zoonotic and environmental disease. The bacteria is hosted in animal kidneys for months and even years, and the bacteria are released in the environment by the urine of these animals. The transmission to humans occurs by contact with infected animals or contaminated water. There are different entry points for this contamination, it could be a skin abrasion, it could be through the mucous membranes, it can also occur through inhalation of droplets of urines for instance during farming activities and sometimes, it occurs by drinking water.

This course provides a general introduction to the disease through downloadable presentations, transcripts, and quizzes that can be reviewed at your own pace.

Learning objective: By the end of this course you should be able to:

• describe the signs, symptoms, and treatment of the disease;
• identify key preventive actions;
• describe the main challenges in prevention and control.

We hope that this course will help you refresh what you already know and help you transform good principles on leptospirosis management into action.

Course duration: Approximately 1 hour.

Certificates: A Confirmation of Participation is available to participants who complete at least 80% of the course materials.

Course contents

• Leptospirosis :

  Leptospirosis is a bacterial zoonosis transmitted via contact with rodents, domestic animals and contaminated water. The disease is an emerging public health problem.