Rickettsia japonica Infection after Land Leech Bite, Japan

Emerg Infect Dis. 2019 Jun;25(6):1243-1245. doi: 10.3201/eid2506.181985.

Abstract

We report a case of Rickettsia japonica infection in an 81-year-old man in central Japan. The patient had fever, rash, and an eschar but no evidence of a tick bite. His symptoms began 8 days after a land leech bite. The land leech is a potential vector of R. japonica.

Keywords: Japan; Japanese spotted fever; Orientia tsutsugamushi; Rickettsia; Rickettsia japonica; bacteria; leech; scrub typhus; zoonoses.

Publication types

  • Case Reports
  • Letter
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Animals
  • Biomarkers
  • Bites and Stings*
  • Exanthema
  • Fluorescent Antibody Technique
  • Humans
  • Japan
  • Leeches / microbiology*
  • Male
  • Polymerase Chain Reaction
  • Rickettsia Infections / diagnosis*
  • Rickettsia Infections / epidemiology
  • Rickettsia Infections / microbiology
  • Rickettsia Infections / transmission*
  • Rickettsia* / classification
  • Rickettsia* / genetics
  • Rickettsia* / immunology
  • Rickettsia* / isolation & purification
  • Symptom Assessment

Substances

  • Biomarkers