The Adolfo Lutz Institute confirmed the diagnosis of Rocky Mountain spotted fever in the 16-year-old teenager, a resident of Campinas, who died on Tuesday (13). On May 27, she was at the event at Fazenda Santa Margarida, in the district of Joaquim Egídio, a likely place of infection, where three other people were before dying this week from the disease. According to the Campinas Health Department, with the four deaths from the disease, the situation is already configured as a localized outbreak. The district of Joaquim Egídio is mapped as a risk area for spotted fever. According to the Secretary of Health of the State of São Paulo, in 2023, 17 cases of Rocky Mountain spotted fever were recorded with eight deaths, including the four confirmed since Monday (12) and who were at the same event. In 2022, 63 cases were registered, with 44 confirmed deaths. Already in 2021, there were 87 cases and 48 deaths. Alert The state secretariat alert is for people who were at Santa Margarida Farm in the period from May 27th to June 11th and have fever and body pain, headache or reddish spots on the body, seek medical attention immediately and inform the doctor who were in the region. Rocky Mountain spotted fever, also known as tick disease, is a febrile infection of varying severity, with a high lethality rate. Caused by a bacterium of the Rickettsia genus, it is transmitted by tick bites. The incubation period for Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever is from 2 to 14 days, so it is correct to consider exposures that occurred in the last 15 days prior to the onset of symptoms. Among the precautions to be taken to reduce the risks of contracting the disease, check frequently if there are any ticks attached to the body, wear light-colored clothes with long sleeves, long pants and closed-toe shoes. To remove a tick from the skin, whether from a human or an animal, you need to use tweezers gently, twisting the parasite until the mouth comes out of the skin. That’s because the bacteria that causes the disease is in the saliva and if it is squeezed or crushed, it can inoculate more saliva and thus increase the victim’s contact with the bacteria. The disease is not transmitted directly from person to person by contact and its symptoms can be easily confused with other illnesses that cause high fever. In humans, the disease is characterized by fever and red macules (spots) on the body. In addition, there are signs of weakness, headache, muscle and joint pain, all of sudden onset. If left untreated, the disease can quickly lead to death. If diagnosed quickly and treated with specific antibiotics within the first three days of clinical manifestations, the disease is curable. However, after the bacteria spreads through the cells that form the blood vessels, the case can become irreversible.
Agência Brasil
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