Rat Bite Fever Human Disease

Abstract

Rat Bite Fever is an emerging and re-emerging zoonotic disease that occurs in periodic, endemic, and epidemic forms. It is an acute, febrile, and systemic disease classically characterized by acute relapsing fever, rashes, migratory polyarthritis which affects the hands, wrists, and knees. In 1926, in Haverhill, Massachusetts, a large bacterial outbreak was reported by Place and Sutton, caused by the contamination of milk products with Streptobacillus moniliformis (S. moniliformis) bacteria. This outbreak was named Haverhill fever. It is an infrequent disease transmitted by rats and its causative agents are two specific types of bacteria that generate two different kinds of illnesses such as Spirillosis and Streptobacillosis. S. moniliformis bacteria are geographically present only in North America (Streptobacillary Rat Bite Fever) whereas Spirillum minus (S. minus) bacteria that is only reported in Asia and causing Spirillary Rat Bite Fever. It is also called Sodoku in Japanese which means rat poison (So= rat and doku= poison). Both bacterial species are common in rats and can be transmitted from rats to humans through urine, nasal passages, feces, or eye excretions of an infested rat. However, sometimes the infection is spread through food contaminated with excretions such as feces and urine. Specialized culture conditions or PCR tests are usually used for the diagnosis of Rat Bite Fever. Treatment with Tetracycline and Penicillin is commonly used for Rat Bite Fever. If not treated, its mortality rate is 10% to 13%, and a 53% mortality rate with endocarditis in some cases. In order to decrease the risk of infection, when an individual has been bitten by a rat, the affected area should be thoroughly washed and cleaned with disinfected as soon as possible.