Jpn. J. Infect. Dis., 58, 112-114, 2005
To see a printable version of the article in the Adobe file format, click this [PDF] link.
Short Communication
The First Reported Case of Spotted Fever in Fukui Prefecture, the Northern Part of Central Japan
Yoshihiro Noji1,7*, Nobuhiro Takada2, Fubito Ishiguro3, Susumu Fujino1, Takahiko Aoyama1, Hiromi Fujita4, Yasuhiro Yano2, Syunichi Shiomi5, Isamu Mitsuto6, Keiichiro Takase1, Toshihiro Haba1 and Hiroshi Mabuchi7
1Department of Internal Medicine and 6Department of Dermatology, Fukui Prefectural Hospital, Fukui 910- 8526, 2Department of Pathological Sciences, Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Fukui, Fukui 910-1193, 3Fukui Prefectural Institute of Public Health, Fukui 910-8551, 4Ohara Research Laboratory, Ohara General Hospital, Fukushima 960-0915, 5Shiomi Hospital, Fukui 919-0632 and 7Molecular Genetics of Cardiovascular Disorders, Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kanazawa University, Ishikawa 920-8641, Japan
(Received September 21, 2004. Accepted January 12, 2005)
*Corresponding author: Mailing address: Department of Internal Medicine, Fukui Prefectural Hospital, Yotsui 2-8-1, Fukui 910-8526, Japan. Tel: +81-776-54-5151, Fax: +81-776-54-6138, E-mail: nojibon@nifty.com
SUMMARY: A 53-year-old man visited Mt. Arashima-dake in Fukui Prefecture, and was infested by a tick-like organism. He visited a local clinic on July 12, 2004, complaining of high fever, general fatigue and rash. After several days without definite diagnosis, he was admitted to the Fukui Prefectural Hospital, where he was treated with minocycline hydrochloride for 10 days until recovery. His clinical symptoms on admission were high fever (39.6C), erythematous eruption, eschar on the right upper arm, and regional lymphoadenopathy. The epidemiological status and some clinical findings strongly suggested spotted fever (SF), and SF was confirmed based on the finding that his sera were reactive only to antigens of the SF group rickettsiae in the indirect immunoperoxidase analysis. This case is the first official report of SF rickettsiosis in Fukui Prefecture, the northern part of central Japan.