Typhus

Typhus, also Kriegspest, lice fever shipping fever, hospital fever or septic fever is an infection caused by microorganisms of the genus Rickettsia ( Rickettsia prowazekii ), which is transmitted by lice, mites, ticks or fleas. In Germany, the detection of spotted fever pathogen with the name of the affected patient must be reported in accordance with the Infection Protection Act.

Name

Previously typhus was hunger or war fever also known as typhoid mildest, typhoid ambulatorius because it is sometimes spread epidemic under poor hygienic conditions in wartime. Typhus is not related to the known as typhoid fever ( in German language ) disease, which is caused by Salmonella. That it is the spotted fever is a standalone disease, William Jenner saw in London in 1847. Internationally use, such as in English, the disease as typhoid described herein or sometimes referred to as typhoid fever. The illness caused by Salmonella is internationally known as typhoid fever.

Course

The incubation period is 10-14 days. Then there may be a prodromal stage with chills, increasingly high fever, headache and body pain and consciousness ( when the brain is concerned with ) come. Later (the name of the disease therefore ) is a blue- to rotfleckiger by petechial hemorrhages rash typical. The disease occurs mainly in the subtropics and tropics. A possible secondary infection is due to the active immunization with attenuated symptoms.

Diagnostics

The diagnosis can be made ​​clinically or serologically. The serum of a patient having antibodies against rickettsiae, cross-react with the pathogen Proteus OX19 and flocculates ( agglutination Weil-Felix reaction).

Treatment

In Rickettsia infections especially tetracyclines are effective standard treatment is doxycycline.

History

For Napoleon's army typhus was during the Russian campaign has become a serious problem. The bitter cold of winter forced the soldiers, their clothes throughout wearing without change or to clean. In addition, they used garments Fallen to keep makeshift warm. For infected with typhus lice was therefore a simple matter to multiply and spread. While retreating, the "Grande Armée " in the fall of 1813 Mainz was the first catch on French soil. There 15000-17000 man of the French occupation and as many civilians died. The disease remained as typhoid de Mayence ( after the French name for Mainz) in the minds of Frenchmen get.

For the investigation of possible vaccines especially Erwin Oskar Ding-Schuler, human experiments on prisoners in the concentration camp Buchenwald were of Nazi doctors carried out. At the artificially induced infection there several hundred people died. Also in the concentration camp Natzweiler -Struthof, in security camp Schirmeck Vorbruck and in the concentration camp Bergen- Belsen in tests.

The later research head of the pharmaceutical company Grünenthal, Heinrich Mückter was a staff physician and associate director of the Institute of typhus fever and viral research of the Army High Command in Krakow ( as the administrative capital of Auschwitz ) and has among other things for the production of Weigl vaccine against typhus some concentration camp inmates abused as hosts for the pathogen lice. After the war, he withdrew the arrest warrant issued by fleeing to the West.