Volume 10, Number 5—May 2004
Research
Acute Tick-borne Rickettsiosis Caused by Rickettsia heilongjiangensis in the Russian Far East
Oleg Y. Mediannikov*†‡
, Yuri Sidelnikov†, Leonid Ivanov§, Eugenia Mokretsova†, Pierre-Edouard Fournier‡, Irina Tarasevich*, and Didier Raoult‡
, Yuri Sidelnikov†, Leonid Ivanov§, Eugenia Mokretsova†, Pierre-Edouard Fournier‡, Irina Tarasevich*, and Didier Raoult‡Table 4
Epidemiologic, clinical and laboratory data of 13 patients with rickettsiosis.
| Feature or sign | Value (n = 13) |
|---|---|
| Sex, male/female | 8/5 |
| Age, y, mean | 52 (18–66) |
| Mean period between onset and hospitalization, d | 4.6 |
| Mean stay at the hospital, d | 5.7 |
| Primary diagnosis of rickettsiosis at admission | 9 |
| History of tick bite | 6 |
| Incubation period, d, median (range) | 5.5 (4–7) |
| Antibiotics taken before hospitalization | 2 |
| Chills | 13 |
| Malaise | 13 |
| Headache | 13 |
| Dizziness | 11 |
| Myalgias, arthralgias | 13 |
| Nausea | 2 |
| Anorexia | 13 |
| Maculopapular rash | 12 |
| Rash appearance after onset of disease, d, median | 3.6 |
| Duration of rash, d, median (range) | 5.5 (4–7) |
| Presence of eschar | 12 |
| Lymphadenopathy regional to the eschar | 10 |
| Subcutaneous lymphangitis, leading to regional lymph nodes | 2 |
| Hepatomegaly | 5 |
| Splenomegaly | 2 |
| Sleep disturbances | 7 |
| Leukocytosis at admission, (>9,000/mm3) | 6 |
| Leukopenia at admission, (<4,000/mm3) | 2 |
| Increased ESR (>15 mm/h for men, >20 mm/h for women) | 12 |
| Thrombocytopenia, (<150,000/mm3) | 3 |
| Proteinuria (>0.033 g/L) | 1 |
| Increased ALT activity, >1.5 times | 6 |
| Increased AST activity, >1.5 times | 2 |
| Doxycycline treatment, 100 mg twice daily for 14 d | 13 |
aESR, erythrocyte sedimentation rate; ALT, alanine aminotransferase; AST, aspartate aminotransferase.
