Scrub Typhus: Symptoms, Causes and Treatments, etc.

Scrub Typhus is an infectious disease caused by Orientia Tsutsugamushi. It is characterized by the appearance of ulcers accompanied by eschar in the area where the tick’s larva adheres to the skin and sucks blood. Symptoms may appear on the entire body.

Symptoms

The incubation period varies from 6 to 21 days, but is usually about 10 to 12 days. After the incubation period, symptoms of fever, sweating, headache, conjunctival congestion, and enlarged lymph nodes (enlarged state, enlarged) appear. About a week after the fever starts, dark red spot-like papules appear on the torso and spread to the limbs and disappear within a few days. Most of the infected develop the characteristic eschar on the skin. Gastrointestinal symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea may be accompanied.

Causes

Scrub Typhus occurs when a tick larva bites and becomes infected with Orientia tsutsugamushi. It is more likely to occur in people who are primarily active outdoors, such as farmers.

Diagnosis

The presence of eschar, characteristic of Scrub Typhus, can be suspicious. Antibody testing through serological reactions is widely used.

Test methods

Blood tests and chest radiography are performed. Blood tests may show leukopenia or thrombocytopenia, and liver dysfunction may be accompanied. Pulmonary infiltration (a condition in which inflammation spreads from the lesions of the lungs to the surrounding tissues, appears in a blurry and unclear form on the radiograph) is also observed on chest radiographs.

Treatments

When antibiotics such as tetracycline and doxycycline are administered, symptoms are improved.

Progress and complications

With appropriate treatment, symptoms can improve rapidly within 1 to 2 days. However, if left untreated, the fever lasts for about two weeks. Complications may include meningitis, hearing loss, and tinnitus. The mortality rate varies depending on the region, age, and immune status, and varies from 1 to 60%.

Prevention methods

There is no specific preventive vaccine, and reinfection can occur even after recovery. In the case of outdoor activities in the Scrub Typhus epidemic area and during the epidemic season, apply a chemical that can block access to mite larvae on clothing or apply a mite repellent to the exposed skin to prevent infection.

A guide to follow in everyday life

Since it does not spread from person to person, isolation of the patient is not necessary.