Ehrlichiosis
| Ehrlichiosis | |
| ICD-10 | A79.8 |
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| ICD-9 | 082.4 |
| DiseasesDB | 31663 |
| MedlinePlus | 001381 |
| MeSH | D016873 |
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Ehrlichiosis Microchapters |
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Diagnosis |
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Treatment |
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Case Studies |
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Ehrlichiosis On the Web |
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American Roentgen Ray Society Images of Ehrlichiosis |
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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]; Associate Editor(s)-in-Chief: Raviteja Guddeti, M.B.B.S. [2]
Synonyms and keywords: Sennetsu fever; human granulocytic ehrlichiosis; Anaplasma phagocytophilum; Ehrlichia phagocytophila; human monocytic ehrlichiosis
Overview
Historical Perspective
Classification
Pathophysiology
Causes
Differentiating Ehrlichiosis from other Diseases
Epidemiology and Demographics
Risk Factors
Natural History, Complications and Prognosis
Diagnosis
History and Symptoms | Physical Examination | Laboratory Findings | Other Imaging Findings | Other Diagnostic Studies
Treatment
Medical Therapy | Surgery | Primary Prevention | Secondary Prevention | Future or Investigational Therapies
Case Studies
Epidemiology and Demographics
- The average reported annual incidence is 0.7 cases per million population.[1]
- A. phagocytophilium is endemic to New England and the north central and Pacific regions of the United States.
- E. chaffeensis is most common in the south central and southeastern states.
- E. ewingii is most common in the south central and southeastern states.
The lone star tick (Amblyomma americanum) is the primary vector of both Ehrlichia chaffeensis and Ehrlichia ewingii in the United States [2].
Risk Factors
Risk factors for ehrlichiosis include:
- Living near an area with a lot of ticks
- Owning a pet that may bring a tick home
- Walking or playing in high grasses
Natural History, Complications and Prognosis
Complications
- Respiratory distress syndrome
- Hepatitis
- Kidney damage
- Lung damage
- Other organ damage
- Seizure
- Candidiasis
- Opportunistic nosocomial infections[3]
- Death
Diagnosis
Symptoms
Other possible symptoms include:
- Diarrhea
- Fine pinhead-sized areas of bleeding in the skin (petechial rash)
- Flat red rash (maculopapular rash)
- General ill feeling (malaise)
A rash appears in fewer than half of cases.
Physical Examination
Vitals
Skin
Head
Laboratory Findings
- Complete blood count (CBC)
- Granulocyte stain
- Fluorescent antibody test
Treatment
- Doxycycline is the drug of choice.
- For people allergic to drugs of the tetracycline class, rifampicin is an alternative.[1]
- Early clinical experience suggested that chloramphenicol may also be effective, however in vitro susceptibility testing revealed resistance.
Antimicrobial regimen
- 1. Human Monocytic Ehrlichiosis or Human Granulocytic Anaplasmosis (adult) [5]
- Preferred regimen: Doxycycline 100 mg PO/IV q12h for 7-14 days
- Note: Patients should be treated for at least 3 days after the fever subsides and until there is evidence of clinical improvement
- Alternative regimen (1): Chloramphenicol 500mg PO qid
- Alternative regimen (2): Rifampin 600 mg PO/IV qd for 7-10 days
- 2. Human Monocytic Ehrlichiosis or Human Granulocytic Anaplasmosis (pediatric)
- 2.1 ≥ 8 years old
- Preferred regimen: Doxycycline 2 mg/kg IV/PO q12h (Maximum, 200 mg/day) for 10 days
- 2.2 < 8 years old without Lyme disease
- Preferred regimen: Doxycycline 2 mg/kg IV/PO q12h (Maximum, 200 mg/day) for 4-5 days (or 3 days after resolution of fever)
- 2.3 co-infected with Lyme disease
- Preferred regimen: Doxycycline, then Amoxicillin 50 mg/kg in 3 divided doses (Maximum, 500 mg/dose) OR Cefuroxime 30 mg/kg in 2 divided doses (Maximum, 500 mg/dose) for 14 days
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Goddard J (September 1, 2008). "What Is New With Ehrlichiosis?". Infections in Medicine.
- ↑
- ↑ Thomas, Rachael J (1 August 2009). "Current management of human granulocytic anaplasmosis, human monocytic ehrlichiosis and ehrlichiosis". Expert Review of Anti-infective Therapy. 7 (6): 709–722. doi:10.1586/eri.09.44. PMC 2739015. PMID 19681699. Unknown parameter
|month=ignored (help); Unknown parameter|coauthors=ignored (help) - ↑ Marty AM, Dumler JS, Imes G, Brusman HP, Smrkovski LL, Frisman DM (1995). "Ehrlichiosis mimicking thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura. Case report and pathological correlation". Hum. Pathol. 26 (8): 920–5. doi:10.1016/0046-8177(95)90017-9. PMID 7635455. Unknown parameter
|month=ignored (help) - ↑ Bartlett, John (2012). Johns Hopkins ABX guide : diagnosis and treatment of infectious diseases. Burlington, MA: Jones and Bartlett Learning. ISBN 978-1449625580.