Rickettsiosis Explained

Rickettsiosis
Field:Infectious disease

A rickettsiosis is a disease caused by intracellular bacteria.

Cause

Rickettsioses can be divided into a spotted fever group (SPG) and typhus group (TG).[1]

In the past, rickettsioses were considered to be caused by species of Rickettsia.[2] However, scrub typhus is still considered a rickettsiosis, even though the causative organism has been reclassified from Rickettsia tsutsugamushi to Orientia tsutsugamushi. Examples of rickettsioses include typhus, both endemic and epidemic, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and Rickettsialpox.Organisms involved include Rickettsia parkeri.[3]

Many new causative organisms have been identified in the last few decades.[4] Most are in the genus Rickettsia, but scrub typhus is in the genus Orientia.[5]

Diagnosis

No rapid laboratory tests are available to diagnose rickettsial diseases early in the course of illness, and serologic assays usually take 10–12 days to become positive. Research is indicating that swabs of eschars may be used for molecular detection of rickettsial infections.[6] [7]

Treatment

Doxycycline has been used in the treatment of rickettsial infection.[8]

Notes and References

  1. Choi YJ, Jang WJ, Ryu JS, etal . Spotted fever group and typhus group rickettsioses in humans, South Korea . Emerging Infect. Dis. . 11 . 2 . 237–44 . February 2005 . 15752441 . 10.3201/eid1102.040603. 3320442.
  2. Raoult D, Roux V . Rickettsioses as paradigms of new or emerging infectious diseases . Clin. Microbiol. Rev. . 10 . 4 . 694–719 . October 1997 . 9336669 . 172941 . 10.1128/CMR.10.4.694.
  3. Paddock CD, Finley RW, Wright CS, etal . Rickettsia parkeri rickettsiosis and its clinical distinction from Rocky Mountain spotted fever . Clin. Infect. Dis. . 47 . 9 . 1188–96 . November 2008 . 18808353 . 10.1086/592254. free .
  4. Parola P, Paddock CD, Raoult D . Tick-Borne Rickettsioses around the World: Emerging Diseases Challenging Old Concepts . Clin. Microbiol. Rev. . 18 . 4 . 719–56 . October 2005 . 16223955 . 1265907 . 10.1128/CMR.18.4.719-756.2005 .
  5. Unsworth NB, Stenos J, Faa AG, Graves SR . Three Rickettsioses, Darnley Island, Australia . Emerging Infect. Dis. . 13 . 7 . 1105–7 . July 2007 . 18214193 . 2878210 . 10.3201/eid1307.050088.
  6. Angelakis . Emmanouil . Richet . Hervé . Rolain . Jean-Marc . La Scola . Bernard . Raoult . Didier . 2012 . Comparison of real-time quantitative PCR and culture for the diagnosis of emerging Rickettsioses . PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases . 6 . 3 . e1540 . 10.1371/journal.pntd.0001540 . 1935-2735 . 3295807 . 22413026 . free .
  7. Giulieri . Stefano . Jaton . Katia . Cometta . Alain . Trellu . Laurence T. . Greub . Gilbert . February 2012 . Development of a duplex real-time PCR for the detection of Rickettsia spp. and typhus group rickettsia in clinical samples . FEMS Immunology and Medical Microbiology . 64 . 1 . 92–97 . 10.1111/j.1574-695X.2011.00910.x . 1574-695X . 22098502. free .
  8. Web site: Rickettsial Infection: Background, Pathophysiology, Etiology. reference.medscape.com.

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