typhus

Home > ... > Medicine > Diseases and Conditions > Pathology > ...

Essential reading Compare
side-by-side World Encyclopedia The Concise Oxford Dictionary ... The Columbia Encyclopedia, ...

typhus

typhus any of a group of infectious diseases caused by microorganisms classified between bacteria and viruses, known as rickettsias. Typhus diseases are characterized by high fever and an early onset of rash and headache. They respond to antibiotic treatment with tetracycline and chloramphenicol and can be prevented by vaccination. Epidemic typhus, the most serious in the group, is caused by Rickettsia prowazeki, which is transmitted in the feces of body lice. It occurs in crowded, unsanitary conditions and has historically been a major killer in wartime. It occurs more commonly in cooler climates and seasons. Brill's disease, also called recrudescent typhus, is believed to be a milder recurrence of epidemic typhus. Endemic murine typhus is primarily a disease of rodents and is spread to humans by rat fleas. The symptoms are milder than those of epidemic typhus. Scrub typhus (Tsutsugamushi fever) is carried to humans by infected mites. It occurs primarily in East Asia and the Southeast Pacific islands.

Create a link to this page

Copy and paste this link tag into your Web page or blog:

<a href="http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/.aspx#1E1-typhus" title="Facts and information about typhus">typhus</a>

Give this article a thumbs-up on StumbleUpon

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

MLA
Chicago
APA

"typhus." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 17 Dec. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"typhus." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (December 17, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-typhus.html

"typhus." The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2008. Retrieved December 17, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-typhus.html

Learn more about citation styles

typhus

The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology | 1996 | | Â© The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology 1996, originally published by Oxford University Press 1996. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

typhus infectious fever. XVIII. — modL. tȳphus — Gr. tûphos smoke, vapour, stupor, f. túphein smoke.
Hence typhoid resembling typhus; applied spec. to a fever marked by intestinal inflammation and formerly supposed to be a variety of typhus. XVIII. f. TYPHUS + -OID.

Create a link to this page

Copy and paste this link tag into your Web page or blog:

<a href="http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/.aspx#1O27-typhus" title="Facts and information about typhus">typhus</a>

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

MLA
Chicago
APA

T. F. HOAD. "typhus." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 17 Dec. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

T. F. HOAD. "typhus." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (December 17, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-typhus.html

T. F. HOAD. "typhus." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved December 17, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-typhus.html

Learn more about citation styles

typhus

World Encyclopedia | 2005 | Â© World Encyclopedia 2005, originally published by Oxford University Press 2005. (Hide copyright information) Copyright

typhus Any of a group of infectious diseases caused by rickettsiae (small bacteria) and spread by parasites of the human body such as lice, fleas, ticks and mites. Epidemic typhus, the result of infection by Rickettsia prowazekii, is the most serious manifestation. Associated with dirty, overcrowded conditions, it is mainly seen during times of war or famine.

Create a link to this page

Copy and paste this link tag into your Web page or blog:

<a href="http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/.aspx#1O142-typhus" title="Facts and information about typhus">typhus</a>

Cite this article
Pick a style below, and copy the text for your bibliography.

MLA
Chicago
APA

"typhus." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 17 Dec. 2009 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>.

"typhus." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (December 17, 2009). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-typhus.html

"typhus." World Encyclopedia. 2005. Retrieved December 17, 2009 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O142-typhus.html

Learn more about citation styles

Related entries from encyclopedias, dictionaries and thesauruses

Rate these entries|See all related entries

Free newspaper and magazine articles

	Reemerging murine typhus, Japan.(Letters) Magazine article from: Emerging Infectious Diseases; 5/1/2004
	Spring scrub typhus, people's Republic of China.(LETTERS) Magazine article from: Emerging Infectious Diseases; 9/1/2006
	Epidemic typhus imported from Algeria. Magazine article from: Emerging Infectious Diseases; 9/1/1999

Facts and information from other sites

Related articles from newspapers, magazines, and more

	Typhus fever: an overlooked diagnosis.(Case study) Magazine article from: Journal of Health Population and Nutrition; 6/1/2009; ; 700+ words ; INTRODUCTION Epidemic and endemic typhus is sometimes misdiagnosed as typhoid fever...Similarly, co-infection of typhoid and typhus fever can be overlooked if not suspected...are usually present in both typhoid and typhus fever. Jaundice and malena may also be...
	Reemerging murine typhus, Japan.(Letters) Magazine article from: Emerging Infectious Diseases; 5/1/2004; ; 700+ words ; To the Editor: Murine typhus is an arthropod-borne infectious disease...In the 1940s and 1950% many murine typhus cases were reported in Japan. These...the reaction could indicate epidemic typhus or spotted fever in some cases. Since...
	Acute Scrub-Typhus Infection Suppresses HIV-1. Newspaper article from: AIDS Weekly; 9/25/2000; 700+ words ; ...SEP 25 - (NewsRx.com) -- Scrub-typhus bacteria may have antiretroviral activity...tsutsugamushi, the causative agent of scrub typhus." The researchers determined serial...HIV-1 infected Thai adults with scrub typhus who were not receiving antiretroviral...
	Spring scrub typhus, people's Republic of China.(LETTERS) Magazine article from: Emerging Infectious Diseases; 9/1/2006; ; 700+ words ; ...traditional focus of summer scrub typhus. In the early 1950s, the health of the residents was compromised by scrub typhus, with an incidence of 1,000 cases...1990, the annual incidence of scrub typhus maintained a level of 50-100 cases...
	Acute Scrub-Typhus Infection Suppresses HIV-1.(Brief Article) Newspaper article from: Virus Weekly; 9/26/2000; 700+ words ; ...SEP 26 - (NewsRx.com) -- Scrub-typhus bacteria may have antiretroviral activity...tsutsugamushi, the causative agent of scrub typhus." The researchers determined serial...HIV-1 infected Thai adults with scrub typhus who were not receiving antiretroviral...
	[2] Acute Scrub-Typhus Infection Suppresses HIV-1. Newspaper article from: Virus Weekly; 9/26/2000; 700+ words ; ...SEP 26 - (NewsRx.com) -- Scrub-typhus bacteria may have antiretroviral activity...tsutsugamushi, the causative agent of scrub typhus." The researchers determined serial...HIV-1 infected Thai adults with scrub typhus who were not receiving antiretroviral...
	Epidemic typhus imported from Algeria. Magazine article from: Emerging Infectious Diseases; 9/1/1999; ; 700+ words ; We report epidemic typhus in a French patient returning from Algeria...industrialized regions, the introduction of typhus to pediculosis-endemic areas poses a serious public health risk. Epidemic typhus, caused by Rickettsia prowazekii, is...
	Typhus group rickettsiae antibodies in rural Mexico.(Letters)(Letter to the Editor) Magazine article from: Emerging Infectious Diseases; 3/1/2004; ; 700+ words ; ...the risk of transmission of epidemic typhus in the state of Mexico was assessed by...against Rickettsia prowazekii. Louseborne typhus has been a historic scourge in Mexico...million deaths were attributed to epidemic typhus (1). These illnesses primarily affected...
	Maui mice spread typhus Newspaper article from: Honolulu Star - Bulletin; 7/27/2002; ; 700+ words ; ...LAHAINA >> Five cases of murine typhus have been confirmed in the state this...with the oldest one 57 years old. Murine typhus is spread typically through a flea biting...Lahaina, where a man tested positive for typhus but showed unusually severe symptoms...
	Geographic association of Rickettsia felis-infected opossums with human murine typhus, Texas. (Research). Magazine article from: Emerging Infectious Diseases; 6/1/2002; ; 700+ words ; ...the distribution dynamics in the murine typhus-endemic areas of these two states...of the reported human cases of murine typhus. Descriptive epidemiologic analysis of...felis; 8% R. typhi) with human murine typhus cases was also observed...