Queensland tick typhus
- Pronunciation
- /KWEENZ-land tik TIE-fus/
- Category
- Disease Ecology
- Singular
- Queensland tick typhus
Definition
A zoonotic rickettsiosis caused by the bacterium australis and transmitted to humans through the bite of ixodid , primarily Ixodes holocyclus (paralysis tick) and Ixodes tasmani. The presents with fever, headache, rash, and eschar at the bite site, and is to coastal eastern Australia. As a spotted fever group rickettsiosis, it exemplifies the ecological intersection of tick , bacterial , and human-wildlife interface in temperate Australian .
Etymology
From Queensland (Australian state where first described and most cases occur) + (referring to ixodid ) + typhus (historical term for spotted fever group rickettsioses, from Greek typhos, 'smoke' or 'haze,' describing the delirious mental state).
Example
Field biologists working in eucalypt forest of southeastern Queensland routinely check for attached Ixodes holocyclus nymphs, as this is the principal of Queensland typhus; an eschar developing at a bite site combined with fever and regional lymphadenopathy warrants serological testing for australis.
Synonyms
- Australian spotted fever
- Rickettsia australis infection
Related Terms
- Rickettsia australis
- Ixodes holocyclus
- Ixodes tasmani
- spotted fever group rickettsiosis
- tick-borne disease
- Zoonosis
- eschar
- rickettsiosis
- medical entomology
Usage Notes
Distinguished from (Orientia tsutsugamushi, transmitted by trombiculid mites) and ( prowazekii, -borne), which share the 'typhus' designation but differ in , geography, and . The term is geographically specific; 'Australian spotted fever' is occasionally used but less precise. In veterinary contexts, the same can cause in domestic animals, though human cases dominate reported literature. relies on serology, , or biopsy of the eschar, not solely clinical presentation, which overlaps with other -borne illnesses.