Epidemic Louse-Borne Typhus (Typhus)

The classic form of typhus, caused by RICKETTSIA PROWAZEKII, which is transmitted from man to man by the louse Pediculus humanus corporis. This disease is characterized by the sudden onset of intense headache, malaise, and generalized myalgia followed by the formation of a macular skin eruption and vascular and neurologic disturbances.

Also Known As:

Networked: 446 relevant articles (7 outcomes, 35 trials/studies)

Relationship Network

Disease Context: Research Results

Related Diseases

1.	Malaria
2.	Endemic Flea-Borne Typhus (Typhus, Endemic Flea Borne)
3.	Scrub Typhus (Typhus, Scrub)
4.	Scabies (Sarcoptic Mange)
5.	Respiratory Tract Infections (Respiratory Tract Infection)

Experts

1.	Raoult, Didier: 7 articles (04/2012 - 09/2002)
2.	Walker, David H: 4 articles (12/2005 - 06/2003)
3.	Parola, Philippe: 3 articles (09/2014 - 10/2006)
4.	Socolovschi, Cristina: 3 articles (09/2014 - 02/2012)
5.	Paris, Daniel H: 3 articles (03/2012 - 01/2010)
6.	Blacksell, Stuart D: 3 articles (03/2012 - 01/2010)
7.	Raoult, D: 3 articles (12/2005 - 07/2000)
8.	Rohani, M Y: 3 articles (12/2002 - 06/2002)
9.	Tay, S T: 3 articles (12/2002 - 06/2002)
10.	Ng'ang'a, Zipporah: 2 articles (04/2015 - 10/2014)

Drugs and Biologics

Drugs and Important Biological Agents (IBA) related to Epidemic Louse-Borne Typhus:

1.	Chloramphenicol (Chloromycetin)FDA Link 12/01/1967 - "[The efficacy of levomycetin in treating patients with typhus abdominalis]." 10/01/1973 - "I. Multiplication of typhus rickettsiae in human macrophage cell cultures in the nonimmune system: influence of virulence of rickettsial strains and of chloramphenicol." 11/01/1965 - "[Influence of chloramphenicol on the reactivity and adaptation of interoceptive reflexes following perfusion of intestinal interoceptors with typhus endotoxin]." 10/01/1956 - "[Application of levomycetin in tick typhus]." 11/01/1955 - " II. Effect of synthomycetin and levomycetin on the course of experimental typhus exanthematosus in guinea pigs]."
2.	AntigensIBA 01/01/1995 - "Serological studies of the antigenic similarity between typhus group rickettsiae and Weil-Felix test antigens." 04/01/2015 - "The diagnosis was confirmed by a single titer of IgM≥128 or by seroconversion to typhus group antigen identified by indirect fluorescent assay. " 09/03/2014 - "The novel rickettsial vaccine candidate antigens, RP778, RP739, RP598, and RP403, protected mice against a lethal challenge with Rickettsia typhi, which is indicative of cross-protective immunity within the typhus group rickettsiae. " 01/01/2010 - "Presented as "Fleck's hypothesis", an outline was given on antigens in the urine of patients with typhus exanthematicus, a disease that needed an early diagnosis or a preventative vaccination. " 08/01/2000 - "These data as well as the data of other investigators show that serodiagnostics of epidemic typhus using recombinant antigens remains a problem."
3.	DDTIBA 07/01/2005 - "A lost chapter in the early history of DDT: the development of anti-typhus technologies by the Rockefeller Foundation's Louse Laboratory, 1942-1944." 04/01/1999 - "DDT, a pesticide, was first used in the 1940s to control wartime typhus and agricultural pests. " 01/01/1960 - "Body-lice collected in the Kosohovo-Metohia area of Yugoslavia, an area with a long history of epidemic typhus and one which had been treated with DDT since 1947, were tested for their susceptibility to that compound by the standard WHO test and showed an average mortality of 99% to 1.0% DDT and 96% to 0.1% DDT. " 02/01/1946 - "Control of Typhus in Italy 1943-1944 by Use of DDT." 06/01/1998 - "These efforts culminated in the world's first field trial of DDT against louse-borne typhus and later as a residual spray for malaria. "
4.	Doxycycline (Vibramycin)FDA LinkGeneric 09/28/1974 - "Single-dose doxycycline treatment of louse-borne relapsing fever and epidemic typhus." 07/01/1987 - "Doxycycline has emerged as the best treatment for murine typhus, epidemic typhus, and scrub typhus. " 05/01/2014 - "Here, we are discussing a case of acute hepatitis, its clinical presentation, diagnosis and treatment, which was later found to be caused by Indian tick typhus (a spotted fever group rickettsia), which was diagnosed on the basis of serology and its clinical response to doxycycline. " 07/01/2014 - "We present a case of Indian tick typhus presenting with purpura fulminans (retiform purpura all over the body), sepsis and multiorgan failure without lymphadenopathy and eschar, successfully treated with doxycycline and discharged home. " 01/01/2012 - "Although typhus group antibodies were not present during the patient's acute illness, empiric therapy with doxycycline was initiated, and the patient defervesced. "
5.	Membrane Proteins (Integral Membrane Proteins)IBA 02/01/2005 - "The presence of the nucleic acid of the spotted fever group (SPG) and typhus group (TG) rickettsiae was investigated in 200 serum specimens seropositive for SFG rickettsiae by multiplex-nested polymerase chain reaction with primers derived from the rickettsial outer membrane protein B gene. " 11/01/2004 - "The outer membrane protein B (OmpB) of the typhus group rickettsiae is an immunodominant antigen and has been shown to provide protection against typhus in animal models. " 01/01/1987 - "Analysis of 15 spotted fever group (SFG) and 2 typhus group strains of rickettsiae with a panel of monoclonal antibodies revealed a number of shared and unique epitopes of the 120- and 155-kilodalton surface proteins. " 11/06/1995 - "We have isolated an Arabidopsis thaliana cDNA encoding a highly hydrophobic membrane protein of 589 amino acids which contains 12 potential transmembrane helices and shows a high degree of similarity (43.5% identity, 66.2% similarity) to the ATP/ADP translocase of the Gram-negative bacterium Rickettsia prowazekii, an obligate intracellular parasite responsible for the epidemic typhus. "
6.	Azithromycin (Zithromax)FDA LinkGeneric 06/01/2000 - "Rickettsia prowazekii, the agent causing Brill-Zinsser disease, cannot be treated with azithromycin. " 06/01/2000 - "Two patients suffering from Brill-Zinsser disease were treated with azithromycin, which did not prove effective. " 06/01/2000 - "Failure of azithromycin in treatment of Brill-Zinsser disease." 01/01/2010 - "Febrile pregnant women on the Thai-Burmese border who do not have malaria, pyelonephritis or respiratory tract infection should be treated with azithromycin, effective for typhus and leptospirosis."
7.	Permethrin (Ambush)FDA LinkGeneric 12/01/2012 - "Fabric treated with permethrin retains toxicity to lice even after 20 washings, thereby offering significant long-term passive protection against epidemic typhus. "
8.	Complement System Proteins (Complement)IBA 06/01/1946 - "The complement-fixation and Weil-Felix reactions in a study of typhus among wild rats." 01/01/1946 - "Further use of the quantitative complement-fixation test in the study of typhus." 12/01/1945 - "Studies on toxicity complement-fixing and immunogenic activity of typhus-infected yolk sacs." 05/01/1994 - "Serological response of patients suffering from primary and recrudescent typhus: comparison of complement fixation reaction, Weil-Felix test, microimmunofluorescence, and immunoblotting." 09/01/1972 - "Fluorescent antibody complement fixation test as a serodiagnostic method in the Brill-Zinsser disease."
9.	AntibodiesIBA 01/01/2015 - "Serological screening tests for antibodies against rickettsiae usually only distinguish between SFG and Typhus Group (TG) Rickettsiae due to the strong cross reactivities within the groups. " 06/01/2008 - "We tested sera from 176 homeless people in Houston for antibodies against typhus group rickettsiae (TGR). " 03/01/2004 - "Typhus group Rickettsiae antibodies in rural Mexico." 05/01/1994 - "prowazekii was found to be similar during primary and recrudescent typhus, and all sera examined contained antibodies to the same R. " 01/01/1994 - "The protective role of antibodies evaluated by the solid-phase fluorescent enzyme immunoassay in typhus immunity has been shown."
10.	VaccinesIBA 11/01/1950 - "Studies on commercial typhus vaccines. " 11/01/1950 - "Studies on commercial typhus vaccines. " 11/01/1950 - "Studies on commercial typhus vaccines. " 11/01/1950 - "Studies on commercial typhus vaccines. " 07/15/2007 - "He was the first to evaluate vaccines against typhus, employing volunteers to test the effectiveness of the vaccines. "

Therapies and Procedures

1.	Blood Transfusion (Blood Transfusions) 09/07/1950 - "[Transmission of typhus in blood transfusion]." 01/01/2014 - "The aim of the study was to evaluate exposure to Coxiella burnetii, spotted fever and typhus group rickettsiae, and Bartonella henselae using IFA and ELISA (IgG) in serum collected from 319 volunteer blood donors identified by the Blood Transfusion Service of Namibia (NAMBTS). "
2.	Injections 09/01/1961 - "[Immunization of man against typhus epidemics by injections of avirulent Rickettsia prowazeki (CEPAE). " 03/31/1931 - "Guinea pigs can be immunized against Mexican typhus virus by peritoneal injections of formalinized Rickettsia material, provided sufficient amounts of the organisms are used. " 03/31/1922 - "In the filtrates of typhus-infected tissues of guinea pigs can be occasionally found a substance which produces in these animals thermic reactions, lesions characteristic of experimental typhus, and, still less frequently, immunity to later injections of active virus. " 03/31/1922 - "In the filtrates of typhus-infected tissues of guinea pigs can be occasionally found a substance which produces in these animals thermic reactions, lesions characteristic of experimental typhus, and, still less frequently, inimunity to later injections of active virus. " 01/31/1922 - "The dead virus fails to induce not only the typical experimental disease but also an immunity to further injections of typhus virus. "
3.	Drug Therapy (Chemotherapy) 01/01/1948 - "Typhus and chemotherapy." 01/10/1946 - "Experimental chemotherapy of typhus; anti-rickettsial action of p-sulphonamidobenzamidine and related compounds." 02/01/1957 - "[A brief essay on the development of chemotherapy of malaria and recurrent typhus in Russia]."
4.	Chemoprevention 08/01/1978 - "Formation of typhus immunity was seen when such chemoprophylaxis scheme was followed." 05/01/1991 - "Prevention of rickettsial infections is aimed at individual control and epidemic measures (especially in epidemic typhus), vector and rodent control, milk pasteurization (in Q fever), chemoprophylaxis and immunoprophylaxis. "
5.	Catheters 04/01/1995 - "It was only after suitable cannulae had been introduced by Trousseau in 1851 (double cannula with removeable insert) that tracheotomy became a routine procedure, and it was immediately carried out in a great many cases of diphtheria, croup, typhus, and lues, which often caused critical dispnea. "