Disease Information for Sennetsu fever/Ehrlichiosis variant

Sennetsu Fever; Human Ehrlichial Infection, Sennetsu Type;

Sennetsu Fever is a rare infectious disease belonging to a group of diseases known as the Human Ehrlichioses; These diseases are caused by bacteria belonging to the "Ehrlichia" family; Several forms of Human Ehrlichial infection have been identified including Sennetsu Fever, Human Monocytic Ehrlichiosis (HME), and Human Granulocytic Ehrlichiosis (HGE); Though caused by different strains of Ehrlichia bacteria, the disorders are all characterized by similar symptoms; The symptoms of Sennetsu Fever may include a sudden high fever, headache, and muscle aches (myalgia) within a few weeks after initial infection; In some cases, affected individuals may also experience nausea, vomiting, and/or loss of appetite (anorexia); In addition, in many cases, abnormal laboratory findings may include a decrease in white blood cells (leukopenia) and/or an abnormal increase in the level of certain liver enzymes (hepatic transaminases); Sennetsu Fever is caused by the bacterium Ehrlichia sennetsu; The vector (or carrier) for this bacterium has not yet been determined; however, some researchers believe that infection may result from the ingestion of raw fish;

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Ehrlichiae are small, gram-negative bacteria that primarily invade leukocytes (white blood cells), the same cells which fight disease by destroying microorganisms that enter the body; Ehrlichiae typically appear as minute, round bacteria (cocci), ranging from 1 to 3 µm (micrometers) in diameter; In the leukocytes, ehrlichiae divide to form vacuole-bound colonies known as morulae (plural for morula, which is the Latin word for mulberry, referring to the mulberry-like clustering of the dividing organisms); The formation of morulae is a defining characteristic of this group of bacterial pathogens; Can be transmitted by tick bites

The ehrlichiae were initially grouped according to the type of blood cell most commonly infected (granulocyte, lymphocyte, monocyte, platelet), and disease classes have been termed "granulocytic (or granulocytotropic) ehrlichiosis" or "monocytic (or monocytotropic) ehrlichiosis." However, this type of classification may be misleading because some of the Ehrlichia species have been found in cells other than their chief target cell type; In addition, more than one species may be responsible for the broad category of "monocytic" or "granulocytic" ehrlichiosis ----------------------[CDC-gov website 2005]--------------

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