Murine Typhus: An Important Consideration for the Nonspecific Febrile Illness
Murine typhus is a widely distributed flea-borne infection caused by Rickettsia typhi. Symptoms of murine typhus are nonspecific and mimic a variety of other infectious diseases. We herein report a case of murine typhus in an area where the broad use of DDT in the mid-20th century has now made it a...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2012-01-01
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| Series: | Case Reports in Medicine |
| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2012/134601 |
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| author | Gurjot Basra Megan A. Berman Lucas S. Blanton |
| author_facet | Gurjot Basra Megan A. Berman Lucas S. Blanton |
| author_sort | Gurjot Basra |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Murine typhus is a widely distributed flea-borne infection caused by Rickettsia typhi. Symptoms of murine typhus are nonspecific and mimic a variety of other infectious diseases. We herein report a case of murine typhus in an area where the broad use of DDT in the mid-20th century has now made it a rare disease. The patient described presented with headache, fever, and a faint macular rash. Initial laboratory studies revealed a slight transaminase elevation. Further questioning revealed exposure to opossums, prompting the consideration of murine typhus as a diagnosis. Although typhus group antibodies were not present during the patient’s acute illness, empiric therapy with doxycycline was initiated, and the patient defervesced. One month after convalescence, the patient returned to clinic with serum that contained typhus group antibodies with an IgG titer of 1 : 1024. Murine typhus is an important consideration during the workup of a patient with a nonspecific febrile illness. Exposure to reservoir hosts and the flea vector place humans at risk for this disease. Clinician recognition of this entity is required for diagnosis and effective therapy. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-08c4c577207e4573a82c09b4d62eccac |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1687-9627 1687-9635 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2012-01-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Case Reports in Medicine |
| spelling | doaj-art-08c4c577207e4573a82c09b4d62eccac2025-02-03T01:01:36ZengWileyCase Reports in Medicine1687-96271687-96352012-01-01201210.1155/2012/134601134601Murine Typhus: An Important Consideration for the Nonspecific Febrile IllnessGurjot Basra0Megan A. Berman1Lucas S. Blanton2Division of General Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, The University of Texas Medical Branch, 301 University Boulevard, Galveston, TX 77555, USADivision of General Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, The University of Texas Medical Branch, 301 University Boulevard, Galveston, TX 77555, USADivision of Infectious Diseases, Department of Internal Medicine, The University of Texas Medical Branch, 301 University Boulevard, Galveston, TX 77555, USAMurine typhus is a widely distributed flea-borne infection caused by Rickettsia typhi. Symptoms of murine typhus are nonspecific and mimic a variety of other infectious diseases. We herein report a case of murine typhus in an area where the broad use of DDT in the mid-20th century has now made it a rare disease. The patient described presented with headache, fever, and a faint macular rash. Initial laboratory studies revealed a slight transaminase elevation. Further questioning revealed exposure to opossums, prompting the consideration of murine typhus as a diagnosis. Although typhus group antibodies were not present during the patient’s acute illness, empiric therapy with doxycycline was initiated, and the patient defervesced. One month after convalescence, the patient returned to clinic with serum that contained typhus group antibodies with an IgG titer of 1 : 1024. Murine typhus is an important consideration during the workup of a patient with a nonspecific febrile illness. Exposure to reservoir hosts and the flea vector place humans at risk for this disease. Clinician recognition of this entity is required for diagnosis and effective therapy.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2012/134601 |
| spellingShingle | Gurjot Basra Megan A. Berman Lucas S. Blanton Murine Typhus: An Important Consideration for the Nonspecific Febrile Illness Case Reports in Medicine |
| title | Murine Typhus: An Important Consideration for the Nonspecific Febrile Illness |
| title_full | Murine Typhus: An Important Consideration for the Nonspecific Febrile Illness |
| title_fullStr | Murine Typhus: An Important Consideration for the Nonspecific Febrile Illness |
| title_full_unstemmed | Murine Typhus: An Important Consideration for the Nonspecific Febrile Illness |
| title_short | Murine Typhus: An Important Consideration for the Nonspecific Febrile Illness |
| title_sort | murine typhus an important consideration for the nonspecific febrile illness |
| url | http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2012/134601 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT gurjotbasra murinetyphusanimportantconsiderationforthenonspecificfebrileillness AT meganaberman murinetyphusanimportantconsiderationforthenonspecificfebrileillness AT lucassblanton murinetyphusanimportantconsiderationforthenonspecificfebrileillness |