Context:
Recently, a study conducted by Christian Medical College (CMC), Vellore revealed that Rural communities face a high risk of potentially life-threatening scrub typhus infections.
- It was conducted in collaboration with the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM).
- The study of 32,000 people in rural Tamil Nadu identified scrub typhus as a leading but under-recognized cause of fever-related hospitalizations.
- Researchers found that nearly 10% of the population was infected with scrub typhus annually over two years.
- Scrub typhus was the most significant cause of fever after Covid19
About Scrub Typhus Infections
- It is a severe infection caused by the bacterium Orientia tsutsugamushi, transmitted through the bite of infected larval mites (chiggers).
- The bacterium shows high levels of antigenic variation.
- It is a major public health concern in the Asia-Pacific region, particularly in the area known as the “tsutsugamushi triangle.”
- Symptoms: It includes fever, headache, body aches, rash, and a blackened sore at the chigger bite site, typically appearing 10 days after infection.
- Treatment: It can be treated with antibiotics such as doxycycline and azithromycin, but no vaccine is currently available for prevention.