Some Rickettsial and Related Infections
Infection | Infecting Bacteria and Vectors (ticks, mites, or other insects that transmit infection) | Hosts | Areas Where Infection Occurs | Symptoms |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Typhus | ||||
Brill-Zinsser disease (a recurrence of epidemic typhus, sometimes years after the first infection) | Rickettsia prowazekii Transmitted by body lice or by unknown methods when the hosts are wild flying squirrels | People and wild flying squirrels | Throughout the world | About 8 to 16 days after the bacteria enter the body, symptoms begin suddenly, with high fever, intense headache, and extreme fatigue. A rash appears 4 to 6 days later. A rash does not always occur in Brill-Zinsser disease. |
Rickettsia typhi or Rickettsia felis Transmitted by fleas | Cats, rats, mice, other rodents, dogs, and wild opossums | Throughout the world | About 7 to 14 days after the bacteria enter the body, symptoms begin shaking chills, fever, and a headache. A rash may appear a few days after the other symptoms. | |
Scrub typhus | ||||
Orientia tsutsugamushi Transmitted by mite larvae (chiggers) | Mites (mites are both the vectors and the hosts) | South Asia, East Asia, Southeast Asia, the Arabian Peninsula, Chile, and Kenya, rare in the United States | About 7 to 10 days after the bacteria enter the body, symptoms begin suddenly, with fever, chills, severe headache, and swollen lymph nodes. A black scab (eschar) may develop at the site of the chigger bite. A rash appears about 5 to 8 days after the fever starts. | |
Spotted fevers | ||||
Rickettsia rickettsii Transmitted by ticks | Rodents | Most of the United States; and Central and South America | About 3 to 12 days after the bacteria enter the body, symptoms begin suddenly with a severe headache, chills, extreme exhaustion, and muscle pains. | |
Rickettsia africae Transmitted by ticks | Cows, sheep, and goats | Sub-Saharan Africa and West Indies | About 5 to 10 days after the bacteria enter the body, symptoms begin. A black scab (eschar) usually develops at the site of the tick bite. | |
Mediterranean spotted fever (boutonneuse fever) | Rickettsia conorii Transmitted by dog ticks | Dogs | Africa, India, southern Europe, and the Middle East around the Mediterranean, Black, and Caspian Seas | About 5 to 7 days after the bacteria enter the body, symptoms begin. A black scab (eschar) may develop at the site of the tick bite. |
Rickettsia sibirica Transmitted by ticks | Rodents | Armenia, central Asia, Siberia, Mongolia, and China | A black scab (eschar) may develop at the site of the tick bite. | |
Rickettsia australis Transmitted by ticks | Rodents | Australia | A black scab (eschar) may develop at the site of the tick bite. | |
Rickettsia parkeri Transmitted by ticks | Rodents | Southern United States and South America | About 2 to 10 days after the bacteria enter the body, symptoms begin. A black scab (eschar) usually develops at the site of the tick bite. | |
Rickettsia akari Transmitted by mites (chiggers) | House mice and some wild mice | United States, Russia, Korea, and Africa | A small bump appears at the site of the mite bite. It develops into a small sore that leaves a scar when it heals. About 1 week later, fever with chills and sweating, headache, muscle pains, and a widespread rash develop. | |
Rickettsia rickettsii subspecies californica (formerly Rickettsia philipii) Transmitted by ticks | Pacific Coast ticks (ticks are both the vectors and the hosts) | California | A black scab (eschar) usually develops at the site of the tick bite, followed by fever, swollen lymph nodes, headache, muscle aches, and fatigue. Rash is a less common than with the other spotted fevers. | |
Neorickettsial infection | ||||
Sennetsu fever | Neorickettsia sennetsu Transmitted by parasitic flatworms | Snails, insects, and fish | Southeast Asia, East Asia, and possibly other regions of Asia | A rash rarely develops. |
Ehrlichiosis | Ehrlichia chaffeensis Transmitted by ticks, mainly the lone star tick | White tail deer and other mammals (such as dogs, raccoons, and opossums) | Southeastern and south central United States | About 9 days after a tick bite, symptoms usually begin. They include sudden fever, chills, muscle aches, weakness, nausea, vomiting, cough, headache, and a general feeling of illness. A rash may develop on the torso, arms, and legs in some people with ehrlichiosis. |
Anaplasmosis | Anaplasma phagocytophilum Transmitted by ticks | Mainly mice and other small rodents | In the United States: The Northeast, mid-Atlantic, upper Midwest, and West Coast Europe | About 9 days after a tick bite, symptoms usually begin. They include sudden fever, chills, muscle aches, weakness, nausea, vomiting, cough, headache, and a general feeling of illness. A rash may develop on the torso, arms, and legs but is not common among people with anaplasmosis. |
Neoehrlichiosis | Neoehrlichia mikurensis Transmitted by ticks | Rodents, including voles and mice | Europe and Asia | Fever, muscle aches, joint pain, and bleeding occur. The rash is violet-colored, raised bumps (nodules) or a shiny, painful, red, raised patch on the skin. |
Q fever | ||||
Coxiella burnetii Transmitted by inhaling infected airborne droplets or dust containing the bacteria or by consuming contaminated raw milk | Sheep, cattle, and goats | Throughout the world | About 2 to 3 weeks after bacteria enter the body, symptoms begin suddenly. They include fever, severe headache, chills, extreme weakness, muscle aches, loss of appetite, sweating, a dry cough, chest pain, and shortness of breath (caused by pneumonia). Q fever causes a rash only in some people who develop an infection of the lining of the heart (endocarditis). | |