OBJECTIVE: To present a case of murine (endemic) typhus, the first to be reported within the last 30 years in Australia. CLINICAL FEATURES: A 17-year-old pregnant woman presented with a viral-like illness and later developed a spotted rash, fever and headache. INVESTIGATION AND OUTCOME: Sera taken on Day 7 and Day 30 of the illness showed seroconversion to Proteus OX19 (Weil-Felix) and to Rickettsia typhi (by immunofluorescence), indicating recent infection with Rickettsia of the typhus group. Her illness was clinically compatible with murine typhus. She responded well to erythromycin and delivered a normal infant at term. CONCLUSION: Infection with Rickettsia typhi (murine typhus) still occurs in Australia. It can be diagnosed by means of specific serological tests for rickettsial disease, which are superior to the non-specific Weil-Felix test.
OBJECTIVE: To present a case of murine (endemic) typhus, the first to be reported within the last 30 years in Australia. CLINICAL FEATURES: A 17-year-old pregnant woman presented with a viral-like illness and later developed a spotted rash, fever and headache. INVESTIGATION AND OUTCOME: Sera taken on Day 7 and Day 30 of the illness showed seroconversion to Proteus OX19 (Weil-Felix) and to Rickettsia typhi (by immunofluorescence), indicating recent infection with Rickettsia of the typhus group. Her illness was clinically compatible with murine typhus. She responded well to erythromycin and delivered a normal infant at term. CONCLUSION: Infection with Rickettsia typhi (murine typhus) still occurs in Australia. It can be diagnosed by means of specific serological tests for rickettsial disease, which are superior to the non-specific Weil-Felix test.
Authors: Rose McGready; John Antony Jude Prakash; Santosh Joseph Benjamin; Wanitda Watthanaworawit; Tippawan Anantatat; Ampai Tanganuchitcharnchai; Clare L Ling; Saw Oo Tan; Elizabeth A Ashley; Mupawjay Pimanpanarak; Stuart D Blacksell; Nicholas P Day; Pratap Singhasivanon; Nicholas J White; François Nosten; Daniel H Paris Journal: PLoS Negl Trop Dis Date: 2014-11-20
Authors: Irene A Stafford; Fernando H Centeno; Mayar Al Mohajer; George Parkerson; Laila Woc-Colburn; Angelica Janice Burgos-Lee; Martha Rac; James Dunn; Kenneth Muldrew Journal: Case Rep Obstet Gynecol Date: 2020-05-26
Authors: Karen O Mathews; David Phalen; Jacqueline M Norris; John Stenos; Jenny-Ann Toribio; Nicholas Wood; Stephen Graves; Paul A Sheehy; Chelsea Nguyen; Katrina L Bosward Journal: Pathogens Date: 2021-06-12