All Posts Tagged With: "anaplasmosis"

Link: http://eutils.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/eutils/elink.fcgi?dbfrom=pubmed&id=21106294&retmode=ref&cmd=prlinks

Excerpt:

Tick-borne diseases are a constraint to livestock production in many
developing countries as they cause high morbidity and mortality, which
results in decreased production of meat, milk and other livestock
by-products. The most important tick-borne diseases of livestock in
sub-Saharan Africa are East Coast fever (caused by Theileria parva),
babesiosis (caused by Babesia bigemina and B.
bovis), anaplasmosis (caused by Anaplasma marginale) and heartwater (caused
by Ehrlichia ruminantium). Despite their economic importance, information on
the epidemiology of these diseases in many countries, including Zambia, is
often inadequate, making rational disease control strategies difficult to
implement.
In this study 18S and 16S rRNA gene PCR assays were used for a comprehensive
epidemiological analysis of tick-borne disease of cattle in three provinces
of Zambia (Lusaka, Central and Eastern). All the disease pathogens under
study (T.
parva, T. mutans, T. taurotragi, B. bovis, B. bigemina, Anaplasma spp and E.
ruminantium) were prevalent in each of the provinces surveyed. However,
variation was observed in prevalence between regions and seasons. There was
no association between live vaccination against East Coast fever and being
PCR positive for T. parva. A number of risk factors were shown to be
associated with
(a) the occurrence of tick-borne pathogens in cattle and (b) cattle tick
burdens in the wet season. A negative association was observed between the
number of co-infecting pathogens and the erythrocyte packed cell volume
(PCV) of carrier cattle. Crown Copyright (c) 2010. Published by Elsevier
B.V. All rights reserved

Link: http://eutils.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/eutils/elink.fcgi?dbfrom=pubmed&id=20971437&retmode=ref&cmd=prlinks

Excerpt:

Millions of travelers visit the United States every year during
warm months when risk of vector-borne disease is highest. The
epidemiology and geographic distribution of the principal
vector-borne diseases in the United States are reviewed and
recommendations for visitors to reduce their risk of disease are
described. Travel advice should focus on preventing Lyme disease,
anaplasmosis and babesiosis in the northeast and north central
States, West Nile virus disease in western plains States, and
Rocky Mountain spotted fever and tularemia in the southeast;
other diseases and itineraries requiring particular attention are
described. All travelers to the United States should be advised
to practice personal protection against arthropod bites,
including appropriate use of insect repellents, especially when
visiting rural and suburban areas during the warm months.
Copyright (c) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Full article: http://ukpmc.ac.uk/articles/PMC1490240;jsessionid=7D7D2D45FB70B5A24793992EDD921DFB.jvm4

Excerpt:

Abstract

A case of 65-year-old male is reported who presented with myalgias, headache, and fever. He subsequently developed myocarditis and was diagnosed to have anaplasmosis on peripheral blood smear. He was treated with doxycycline for 30 days. A coronary angiogram done after recovery showed normal epicardial arteries. The case illustrates the importance of a careful examination of the peripheral smear, with a high index of clinical suspicion, which led to prompt treatment and complete recovery of the patient

Ehrlichiosis, first discovered before 1910, has been recognized to cause human infection since 1986.1 It belongs to Rickettsiaceae family. Ehrlichiae are small, obligate intracellular bacteria that grow in cytoplasmic vacuoles to form clusters called morulae. Three distinct species cause human ehrlichiosis. E. chaffeensis predominantly affects the monocytes and is hence termed human monocytic ehrlichiosis (HME) while E. phagocytophilium, and E. ewingii cause human granulocytic ehrlichiosis.2E. phagocytophiliumE. equi are now recognized as the same organism and has been renamed Anaplasma phagocytophilum; the disease is now known as Human Granulocytic Anaplasmosis (HGA). Both HME and HGA share similar clinical and laboratory features and are treated with the same antimicrobials.

The use of new, highly sensitive diagnostic methods has revealed persistent
infections to be a common feature of different tick-borne diseases, such as
babesiosis, anaplasmosis and heartwater. Antigenic variation can contribute to
disease persistence through the continual elaboration of new surface structures,
and we know in several instances how this is achieved. Continued