Ehrlichiosis
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| Ehrlichiosis | |
| Classification and external resources | |
| MeSH | D016873 |
|---|---|
Ehrlichiosis is a tickborne[1] bacterial infection, caused by bacteria of the family Anaplasmataceae, genera Ehrlichia and Anaplasma. These obligate intracellular bacteria infect and kill white blood cells. Five species have been shown to cause human infection: Anaplasma phagocytophilum (which causes human granulocytic anaplasmosis (formerly known as human granulocytic ehrlichiosis)), Ehrlichia ewingii (which causes human ewingii ehrlichiosis), E. chaffeensis (which causes human monocytic ehrlichiosis), E. canus, and Neorickettsia sennetsu.[2] The latter two infections are not well studied.
The average reported annual incidence is 0.7 cases per million population. [3]
Recently, human infection by the newly discovered Panoloa Mountain Ehrlichia species has been reported.[4]
A. phagocytophilium is endemic to New England and the north central and Pacific regions of the United States. E. chaffeensis and E. ewingii are most common in the south central and southeastern states. E. ewingii primarily infects deer and dogs (see Ehrlichiosis (canine)). [3]
[edit] Symptoms
The most common symptoms include headache, muscle aches, and fatigue. A rash occurs but is uncommon. Ehrlichiosis can also blunt the immune system, which may lead to opportunistic infections such as candidiasis. If treatment is delayed, ehrlichiosis can prove fatal. The mortality rate is less than 3%. [3]
[edit] Treatment
Doxycyline is the drug of choice. For people allergic to drugs of the tetracycline class, rifampicin is an alternative.[3]. Early clinical experience suggested that chloramphenicol may also be effective, however in vitro susceptibility testing revealed resistance.
[edit] References
- ^ CDC "Questions and Answers" page for tickborne rickettsial diseases
- ^ Dumler JS, Madigan JE, Pusterla N, Bakken JS. Ehrlichioses in humans: epidemiology, clinical presentation, diagnosis, and treatment. Clin Infect Dis. 2007; 45 Suppl 1:S45-51. Pubmed ID =17582569
- ^ a b c d Goddard J (September 1, 2008). "What Is New With Ehrlichiosis?". Infections in Medicine. http://www.consultantlive.com/headache/article/1145625/1405478.
- ^ Reeves WK, Loftis AD, Nicholson WL, Czarkowski AG (2008). "The first report of human illness associated with the Panola Mountain Ehrlichia species: a case report". Journal of medical case reports 2: 139. doi:. PMID 18447934. PMC: 2396651. http://www.jmedicalcasereports.com/content/2//139.
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