How to treat scrub typhus

Tsutsugamushi is an insect that often appears in the summer. It especially likes to bite people. Once a person is bitten by it, he or she will be infected with forest rashes, which is a fatal disease. Therefore, if you are bitten by a scrub typhus typhus in the summer, you must go to the hospital for treatment in time, otherwise the treatment time will be delayed. Scrub typhus is an infectious skin disease, which is very difficult to treat after infection. The following is a detailed introduction on how to treat scrub typhus.

Scrub typhus (or tsutsugamushi disease), also known as jungle typhus, is a natural epidemic disease caused by Orientia tsutsugamsushi (Ot, formerly known as Rickettsial tsutsugamushioi). Rodents are the main source of infection and the disease is transmitted through the bites of chigger larvae. Clinically, it is characterized by fever, eschar or ulcer, swollen lymph nodes and rash. In severe cases, death may occur. The disease is mainly prevalent in tropical and subtropical areas and is widely prevalent in East Asian countries.

Classification of Orientia tsutsugamushi

(1) Serotype

There are diverse and mixed antigenic types of Orientia tsutsugamushi. So far, more than 100 strains of scrub typhus pathogens have been isolated from patients, vector insects and rodents around the world. The recognized standard types are the three serotypes of Karp, Kato and Gilliam, all of which are distributed in China. According to current literature reports, the Karp type is predominant in the area south of the Yangtze River in my country, while the Gilliam type is predominant in the area north of the Yangtze River.

(2) Genotype

At present, the genotyping of Orientia tsutsugamushi mostly uses the 56kD surface protein gene as the target gene. The genotyping mainly includes Karp, Kato, Gilliam, TA763, TA678, TA716, Kawasaki, Kuroki, Shimokoshi, etc. According to existing literature reports, the Karp type is predominant in Fujian and Guangdong regions of my country, while the Kawasaki type is predominant in northern Jiangsu and Shandong regions.

2. Epidemiology

1. Host animals and vectors

Rodents are the most important reservoir hosts. Natural infection of Orientia tsutsugamushi has been found in 18 species of rodents in my country, such as the yellow-haired mouse, the black-striped mouse, and the yellow-breasted mouse; followed by insectivores, such as the stink shrew and the Sichuan short-tailed shrew. In addition, rabbits, pigs, cats and poultry can also be infected.

The vector of this disease is chigger mite. More than 3,000 species have been discovered worldwide, and more than 500 species are found in my country, distributed throughout the country. Only a few chiggers can become the vectors of scrub typhus. The confirmed vectors in my country include the ground mites, the small shield mites, the erythrocyte mites, the high lake mites, the island mites and the jishou mites.