Clinical, laboratory, and epidemiologic features of murine typhus in 97 Texas children.

OBJECTIVE

To document the clinical, laboratory, and epidemiologic characteristics of pediatric patients with murine typhus.

DESIGN

Pediatric patients were diagnosed using serologic testing, and clinical, laboratory, and epidemiologic data were retrospectively reviewed.

SETTING

Of 97 patients, 77 (79%) were identified and treated as inpatients and 20 (21%) were treated as outpatients; most resided in south Texas.

PATIENTS: Between 1979 and 1996, medical records and patient-physician interviews were available for 97 patients aged 16 years and younger with murine typhus.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: The frequency of clinical symptoms and signs, abnormal laboratory findings, epidemiologic findings, and measures of disease severity were determined.

RESULTS

The clinical triad of fever, headache, and rash occurred in only 43 (49%) of 87 pediatric patients throughout the illness. Musculoskeletal symptoms were experienced by 43% of patients, whereas gastrointestinal tract symptoms (nausea, vomiting, anorexia, and diarrhea) occurred in 77%. Systemic involvement was evident by the frequent occurrence of abnormal laboratory findings referable to multiple organ systems, including the liver, kidney, blood, and central nervous system.

CONCLUSIONS

Pediatric infection by Rickettsia typhi usually causes mild to moderate systemic illness. In children, the median duration of illness was 12 days (range, 5-29 days), but severe complications were rare. Length of illness was significantly related to the initial diagnosis, whereas the interval to defervescence was related to therapy with a tetracycline or chloramphenicol. Early recognition and treatment is important to prevent prolonged morbidity.