Few diseases have a name so hard to pronounce. Neoehrlichiosis, or rather the bacterium Candidatus Neoehrlichia mikurensis that causes it, was discovered only 4 years ago. Knowledge about this tick-borne disease is still very limited. Who gets sick most often?
Scientists from the Sahlgrenska Academy have shown that this bacterium poses a risk mainly to patients who take immunosuppressive drugs. The disease is spread by rodents and ticks in Asia and Europe. So far, 19 cases have been recorded, of which as many as 6 in Sweden.
It turned out that people at the highest risk of infection are most often over 50 years old, suffer from hematological or rheumatic disease, and are currently undergoing immunosuppressive therapy with e.g. chemotherapy or cortisone.
In addition to Sweden, cases in Europe have been reported in Switzerland, Germany and the Czech Republic. Fewer than half of the sick remembered contact with the tick.
The symptoms of neoehrlichiosis are nonspecific – a few patients have had blood clots in the legs or vessels of the head, for example, and this has not been associated with an infectious cause. Other common symptoms, such as fever, muscle and joint pain, may be caused by the primary disease. Almost nothing is known about how an infection with Candidatus Neoehrlichia mikurensis affects completely healthy people.
After diagnosing neoehrlichiosis, the patient recovers from the use of antibiotics.
Based on: Sahlgrenska Academy / Kopalniawiedzy
Text: Tomasz Kobosz