A flea-borne disease that can lead to limb amputations is rising rapidly in the US, an official study suggests.
Researchers from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that typhus cases caused by fleas have risen by more than 450 percent in Los Angeles County (LAC), California, since 2010.
CDC doctors said they have not noticed the disease getting more deadly, but it is a possibility and must be monitored. Before 2022, the most recent flea-borne typhus-associated death reported in the area was in 1993, but between June and October last year, there were three fatalities.
Flea-borne typhus, also known as murine typhus, is a disease caused by the bacteria Rickettsia typhi and possibly Rickettsia felis, which are carried by fleas.
The CDC term it a moderately severe disease, but it can be fatal in some cases as it can lead to things like septic shock.
Texas is also experiencing a ‘substantial increase’ in the number of cases across the state, the CDC said. In June 2023, a Texan man had his hands and parts of his feet amputated after catching typhus from a flea, likely during his job as a pet sitter.
The above graph shows the rise from 31 cases in 2010 to 171 in 2022. It excludes the cities of Pasadena and Long Beach, and includes confirmed, probable and suspected cases
A Texan handyman, pet sitter and artist, Michael Kohlhof lost his arms up to his forearms, his toes, and parts of his feet after contracting typhus from a flea bite
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) — which revealed the rise today — warned that clinicians should consider flea-borne typhus in any patient with a fever, headache or rash.
It said the rise could be due to an increase in rats and other rodents in LAC, as well as the prevalence of the cat flea.
Fleas carrying typhus live on animals, particularly feral and stray cats, rats and opossums, but do not make their host animals unwell.
The bacteria spread when feces from an infected insect contaminate a person’s cut or graze while the insect is sucking their blood.
If the person scratches the bite area, the bacteria from the feces can enter the bloodstream. Bacteria can also be rubbed into a person’s eyes, or, in rare cases, inhaled.
Symptoms of the disease include fever, headache, rash, muscle aches, fever, and chills. In severe cases, patients can require hospitalization due to hepatitis or internal bleeding.
Flea-borne typhus is endemic in parts of LAC and Orange County. The disease also often occurs in Texas and Hawaii.
Around 200 cases occur annually throughout the US, particularly in coastal regions.
Flea-borne typhus, also known as murine typhus, is a disease caused by the bacteria Rickettsia typhi and possibly Rickettsia felis, which are carried by fleas
Symptoms then appear six-to-14 days later. Typhus can be treated via antibiotics, with most people recovering within a few days.
Between two and four percent of people who do not receive treatment die worldwide.
Typhus can be prevented by avoiding contact with fleas, mites, ticks and lice, but there is currently no vaccine for the disease.
The CDC warned that the death count could be even higher as patients in LAC with flea-borne typhus from the hospital were not followed after they were discharged, meaning some deaths could have been missed.
One of the deaths, referred to as Patient A, was a 68-year-old Hispanic man. He went to the ER in June 2022 after experiencing a fever and muscle weakness for three days.
He died after 30 days in the hospital due to flea-borne typhus–induced hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) and septic shock.
HLH is a rare immune system disease for which the man received chemotherapy.
Doctors believe the man might have been exposed to rodents and fleas because his home was nearby a highway and litter.
The second patient who died was a 49-year-old Hispanic woman who went to an urgent care facility in August 2022 after suffering headaches and fever for two days.
She experienced multiorgan failure and died after being in the hospital for three days.
Tests done on her body after she died found that she had traces of Rickettsia bacteria in the small blood vessels of her heart and parts of her liver.
Doctors said she might have been exposed to fleas due to stray kittens living in the patient’s backyard.