Holly M Biggs, Casey Barton Behravesh, Kristy K Bradley, F Scott Dahlgren, Naomi A Drexler, J Stephen Dumler, Scott M Folk, Cecilia Y Kato, R Ryan Lash, Michael L Levin, Robert F Massung, Robert B Nadelman, William L Nicholson, Christopher D Paddock, Bobbi S Pritt, Marc S Traeger
Tickborne rickettsial diseases continue to cause severe illness and death in otherwise healthy adults and children, despite the availability of low-cost, effective antibacterial therapy. Recognition early in the clinical course is critical because this is the period when antibacterial therapy is most effective. Early signs and symptoms of these illnesses are nonspecific or mimic other illnesses, which can make diagnosis challenging. Previously undescribed tickborne rickettsial diseases continue to be recognized, and since 2004, three additional agents have been described as causes of human disease in the United States: Rickettsia parkeri, Ehrlichia muris-like agent, and Rickettsia species 364D...
May 13, 2016: MMWR. Recommendations and Reports: Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Recommendations and Reports