Rocky Mountain spotted fever

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Antibodies	Deer ticks	Rocky mountain spotted fever, lesions on arm	Rocky mountain spotted fever, petechial rash
Rocky mountain spotted fever on the arm	Rocky mountain spotted fever on the foot	Tick imbedded in the skin	Ticks

Rocky Mountain spotted fever is an infectious disease caused by Rickettsia rickettsii transmitted to humans by the bite of a tick.

Spotted fever

In the western U.S., the causative agent, R. rickettsii, is transmitted by the wood tick, and in the eastern U.S., by the dog tick. Other ticks transmit the infection in the southern U.S. and in Central and South America.

Contrary to the name "Rocky Mountain," most recent cases have been reported in the eastern United States: North and South Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, Georgia, Tennessee, and Oklahoma. Most cases occur in the spring and summer with about 1,000 cases reported per year. Most of the reported cases have been in children.

The risk factors include recent hiking or exposure to ticks in an area where the disease is known to occur.

Review Date: 06/15/2005
Reviewed By: Monica Gandhi, MD, MPH, Assistant Professor, Division of Infectious Diseases, UCSF, San Francisco, CA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.