Human Rickettsiosis Caused by <i>Rickettsia parkeri</i> Strain Atlantic Rainforest, Urabá, Colombia
Margarita Arboleda, Leidy Y. Acevedo-Gutiérrez, A. Peralta De Avila, Dairo Ospina, Francisco J. Díaz, David H. Walker, Juan David Rodas
Abstract
A mong the numerous causes of acute undifferen- tiated nonmalarial febrile illness, rickettsiae are amenable to treatment that can prevent death or, in the case of non-life-threatening diseases, shorten and ameliorate the course of illness (1). Awareness and knowledge of these infectious diseases are crucial and necessary. In Colombia, Rocky Mountain spotted fever was recognized in the 1930s and then rediscovered in the 21st century (2). Clusters of cases were documented in the departments of Cundinamarca, Crdoba, and Antioquia (2-4). Five fatal cases of Rocky Mountain spotted fever occurred in the village of Las Changas in the district of Necocl in 2006, and 4 fatal cases occurred in a village in the district of Turbo in 2008 (4). Prevalence of antibodies to spotted fever group (SFG) rickettsiae of 25.6% among healthy residents of several areas in Colombia suggests contact of persons with less-virulent SFG rickettsiae, such as Rickettsia parkeri, which has previously been reported in Colombia in ticks of the species Amblyomma ovale, and R. amblyommatis, previously reported in A. cajennense ticks (5-7).