Rocky Mountain spotted fever is described as a severe, rapidly progressive and often deadly disease transmitted by the bite of infected ticks, according to the CDC.
The CDC reported Dec. 8 five patients were diagnosed with the fever between July and December. All patients were hospitalized, and three died.
Four patients were under 18, according to the agency. Three were U.S. residents, and two were residents of Mexico.
All had traveled to or resided in the city of Tecate in the state of Baja California, Mexico, within two weeks of the fever’s onset.
Rocky Mountain spotted fever is endemic cross northern Mexico and areas of the southwestern U.S., including in multiple border states such as Texas, New Mexico and Arizona in the U.S. as well as Baja California, Sonora, Chihuahua, Coahuila, and Nuevo León in Mexico, according to the CDC.
Symptoms can be relatively mild during the first few days and include a low to moderate fever, headache, gastrointestinal symptoms, abdominal pain, myalgia, rash and edema around the eyes and on the back of hands.
If the illness is not treated and advances, after day five of illness the patient may develop altered mental status, cerebral edema, respiratory compromise, necrosis, multi-organ system damage, and go into a coma, according to the CDC.
The disease’s onset and progress are rapid, and half of those who die from it succumb within eight days of its onset. Untreated, the disease is often fatal.
The case fatality rate in Mexico can exceed 40 percent, according to the CDC.
The agency recommends anyone who suspects they may have contracted the disease to see a doctor and start treatment based on symptoms, and not delay treatment pending a laboratory test.
