Endemic mite-transmitted dermatoses and infectious diseases in the South.

Mites are mostly ubiquitous, bothersome pests with few species of medical importance and, of these, most are scabies mites, trombiculid larval mites and animal and plant mites. All patients with scabies and their close household, institutional and sexual contacts should be informed that scabies is a highly transmissible ectoparasitic infestation and that several topical treatments and an effective oral treatment are readily available and highly effective at present. Sexually active patients with scabies should be screened for other sexually transmitted diseases, particularly human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and human T-cell lymphotrophic virus type1 (HTLV-1) infections. Finally, only the Asian and Eurasian Leptotrombidium species of trombiculid larval mites (or chiggers) can transmit scrub typhus in endemic regions of Asia, Eurasia, and the South Pacific, and only the house-mouse mite can transmit rickettsialpox in both urban and rural dwellings worldwide, including the southern United States.