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Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever

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Rocky Mountain spotted fever

[′räk·ē ′mau̇nt·ən ′späd·əd ′fē·vər]
(medicine)
An acute, infectious, typhuslike disease of man caused by the rickettsial organism Rickettsia rickettsi and transmitted by species of hard-shelled ticks; characterized by sudden onset of chills, headache, fever, and an exanthem on the extremities. Also known as American spotted fever; tick fever; tick typhus.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Scientific & Technical Terms, 6E, Copyright © 2003 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.

Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever

 

an acute infectious disease of man, of the group of rickettsioses. A naturally endemic disease, it is encountered in the western hemisphere.

Rocky Mountain spotted fever is usually observed in spring and summer. The causative agent is transmitted by ticks from generation to generation; other reservoirs of the virus include rodents and dogs. The disease develops within two to 14 days after the tick bite. The causative agent may also reach the skin and mucosa when the tick is crushed. The disease is manifested by high fever (39° to 41 °C) and a spotty nodular rash that appears on the second to fifth day. Other symptoms are headache, nausea, vomiting, pains in the bones and muscles, restlessness, and insomnia.

Rocky Mountain spotted fever is treated with antibiotics and oxygen therapy. It is prevented by avoiding tick bites and by disinsectization and immunization.

The Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd Edition (1970-1979). © 2010 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.
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