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  • Mon. Nov 4th, 2024

Scrub Typhus

ByULF TEAM

Jan 23, 2024 #Health
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According to a new study conducted in Tamil Nadu’s Vellore, every millimetre increase in rainfall could lead to a 0.5 to 0.7 per cent rise in monthly scrub typhus cases.

About Scrub Typhus:

  • It is an infectious disease caused by bacteria called Orientia tsutsugamushi.
  • It is transmitted through infected mites.
  • Symptoms
    • The symptoms typically include fever, headache, body ache and sometimes a rash.
    • In severe cases, the infection can lead to respiratory distress, brain and lung inflammation, kidney failure and multi-organ failure, ultimately resulting in death.
  • Several factors like vector abundance, climatic factors, exposures like farming and owning domestic animals, outdoor activities and sanitation, affect its prevalence.
  • This disease is more prevalent in cooler months.
  • In Northeast India, cases of scrub typhus occur from July to November in Manipur, July to October in Sikkim and September to November in Darjeeling.
  • It will not spread from person to person.
  • Treatment: Scrub typhus should be treated with the antibiotic doxycycline. Doxycycline can be used in persons of any age.
  • There is no vaccine available for this disease.

Key facts about Typhus fever

  • Typhus fevers are a group of diseases caused by bacteria that include epidemic typhus, scrub typhus, and murine typhus.
    • Epidemic typhus: It is caused due to Rickettsia prowazeki and it is spread to people through contact with infected body lice. 
    • Scrub typhusis: It caused due to Orientia tsutsugamushi and spread by chiggers.
    • Murine typhus: It is caused due to Rickettsia typhi spread by fleas. It occurs in tropical and subtropical climates around the world

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