Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever and the Rickettsioses

Abstract

The rickettsioses constitute a diverse group of arthropodborne human diseases capable of producing significant morbidity and mortality. They share important pathologic and clinical attributes that permit their diagnosis in most instances (1). The rickettsioses are responsible for a great number of deaths seen particularly in times of war. It is estimated that over 3 million combatants and civilians in the First World War succumbed to epidemic typhus. Among the more deadly types of infection belonging to this group is Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, the principal subject of this chapter.