If typhus is not treated quickly, it can sometimes be life threatening. You may have a blood test or skin biopsy to check if you have typhus. Antibiotics are used to treat the infection. They're usually started before you get your test result, as this can take up to a week. Most people start to feel better within 48 hours of starting treatment. Untreated disease can cause severe illness and damage to one or more organs, including the liver, kidneys, heart, lungs, and brain.
Skip directly to site content Skip directly to page options Skip directly to A-Z link. Typhus Fevers. Section Navigation. Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Syndicate. Flea-borne murine typhus. Minus Related Pages. Symptoms of epidemic typhus begin within 2 weeks after contact with infected body lice. Signs and symptoms may include:. Some people can remain infected, without symptoms, for years after they first get sick. Rarely, these individuals can have a relapse in disease, called Brill-Zinsser disease, months or years following their first illness.
The symptoms of Brill-Zinsser disease are similar to the original infection, but are usually milder than the initial illness. Skip directly to site content Skip directly to page options Skip directly to A-Z link. There are three different types of typhus, and each type is caused by a different type of bacterium and transmitted by a different type of arthropod. This type is caused by Rickettsia prowazekii and carried by the body louse , and possibly by ticks as well. It can be found around the world, including in the United States, but is typically found in areas of high population and poor sanitation, where conditions promote lice infestation.
Alternatively known as murine typhus, this type is caused by Rickettsia typhi and is carried by the rat flea or cat flea. Endemic typhus can be found worldwide. It may be found among people in close contact with rats. Is it a fleabite?
Symptoms and treatments ». This type is caused by Orientia tsutsugamushi and carried by mites in their larval stage when they are chiggers. The louse, flea, tick , or mite becomes a carrier of the bacteria when they feed on the blood of an infected person epidemic typhus or an infected rodent any of the three typhus forms mentioned above.
If you come in contact with these bacterium-carrying arthropods for example, by sleeping on bed sheets infested with lice , you can become infected in a couple ways. The bacteria, in addition to being transmitted through your skin by their bites, can also be transmitted through their feces.
If you scratch the skin over an area where lice or mites have been feeding, the bacteria in their feces can enter your bloodstream through the tiny wounds on your skin. Symptoms vary slightly by the type of typhus, but there are symptoms that are associated with all three types of typhus, such as:. The symptoms of endemic typhus last for 10 to 12 days and are very similar to the symptoms of epidemic typhus but are usually less severe.
They include:. The incubation period for the disease is five to 14 days, on average. Travelers who get typhus while traveling abroad may not experience symptoms until they are back home.
0コメント