MT. VERNON -- The Jefferson County Health Department has confirmed at least one case of Rocky Mountain spotted fever.
According to registered nurse Jill Bean, cases are confirmed by specific Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines.
``They're looking for the rash, plus other signs and symptoms with blood test confirmation. That's true with Lyme disease or any other [diseases] ticks carry,'' she said.
Bean added that though doctors may tell patients they have RMSF, the health department does not confirm it until they have met those guidelines.
According to the CDC, RMSF is defined as an illness caused by Rickettsia rickettsii, a bacterial pathogen transmitted to humans through contact with ticks. Dermacentor species of ticks are most commonly associated with infection, including Dermacentor variabilis (the American dog tick), Dermacentor andersoni (the Rocky Mountain wood tick) and more recently Rhiphicephalus sanguineus (the brown dog tick).
Onset of the disease averages one week following a tick bite. Age-specific illness is highest for children and older adults. Illness is characterized by acute onset of fever and may be accompanied by headache, malaise, muscle pain, nausea/vomiting or neurologic signs. A red, spotty rash appears four to seven days following onset in many patients, often present on the palms and soles. RMSF may be fatal in as many as 20 percent of untreated cases, and severe, sudden disease can occur.
Clinical evidence needed for an official diagnosis includes any reported fever and one or more of the following: rash, headache, myalgia, anemia, thrombocytopenia, or any hepatic transaminase elevation. Cases are classified as confirmed, meaning a clinically compatible case (meets clinical evidence criteria) that is laboratory confirmed, and probable, meaning that a clinically compatible case (meets clinical evidence criteria) that has supportive laboratory results, according to the CDC.
In 2007, the Jefferson County Health Department reported four probable cases, but no confirmed cases.
And though the health department has not received any reports that ticks are more prominent than in previous summers, Gary Ashby, environmental health director for the department, said he believes the weather indicates that probability.
Limiting exposure to ticks is the most effective way to reduce the likelihood of RMSF, the CDC states. Currently, no licensed vaccine is available for prevention of Rocky Mountain spotted fever.
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Keebler
Honored Contributor (25K+ posts)
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Melanie,
This is in my home town (I moved from there about 20 years ago). I just saw this in their local newspaper.
Sadly, no other advice was given about tick safety. No explanation of the CDC criteria, etc. No LDA or ILADS links.
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