Health authorities in the United States urged travelers arriving from Mexico to monitor their health due to a disease that has been detected in the north of that country caused by a bacteria transmitted by the bite of a tick that lives on dogs.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported the presence of ‘Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever (RMSF)’ in people arriving in the country from Tecate, in the state of Baja California ( Mexico).
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The CDC notes that RMSF can be fatal, and urges people who have traveled to Tecate or another city in northern Mexico and develop symptoms during the trip or within two weeks of returning to the United States to seek medical attention. .
They detail that this disease has been detected in urban areas of several states in northern Mexico, including Baja California, Sonora, Chihuahua, Coahuila and Nuevo León.
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These ticks can lodge anywhere dogs live, which can be carriers of these infected parasites.
Also called Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF) is an acute febrile tick-borne illness caused by the bacteria Rickettsia rickettsii, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
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Patients usually develop symptoms four to ten days after exposure to the bacteria through a tick bite.
Additionally, they may or may not remember the tick bite, since the tick does not need to have prolonged contact with the host to cause an infection.
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Symptoms include fever, headache, and rash, and may also include lymphadenopathy, central nervous system changes such as confusion or neck stiffness, myalgias and arthralgias, hepatitis, vomiting, and cardiovascular instability. The rash often starts around the wrists and ankles.
Health authorities recommend avoiding exposure to ticks, keeping homes and surroundings clean, giving adequate care to domestic animals, and using commercial or natural repellents on both the body and clothing.
(With information from EFE)
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