Specialty Infectious disease ICD-9-CM 080-083 MeSH D012288 | ICD-10 A75-A79 eMedicine ped/2015 | |
A rickettsiosis is a disease caused by intracellular bacteria. It has been predicted that global warming may lead to greater incidence.
Contents
Examples and causative organisms
Rickettsioses can be divided into a spotted fever group (SPG) and typhus group (TG).
In the past, rickettsioses were considered to be caused by species of Rickettsia. However, scrub typhus is still considered a rickettsiosis, even though the causative organism has been reclassified from Rickettsia tsutsugamushi to Orientia tsutsugamushi.
Examples of rickettsioses include typhus, both endemic and epidemic, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and Rickettsialpox.
Organisms involved include Rickettsia parkeri.
Many new causative organisms have been identified in the last few decades.
Most are in the genus Rickettsia, but scrub typhus is in the genus Orientia.
Treatment
Doxycycline has been used in the treatment of rickettsial infection.