What Are The Symptoms Of Rat Fever? Causes And Treatment Options

What Are The Symptoms Of Rat Fever? Causes And Treatment Options . The medical name for rat fever is leptospirosis. The disease is caused by microorganism called leptospira. It can occur at any time of the year, but mostly the fever spreads during monsoon season. Leptospirosis is spread through water and mud which is contaminated with urine of infected animals.

Rats and dogs are the most important reservoir of infection in urban areas, while cattle, pig, mongoose are reservoir in rural areas. Manifestations may range from asymptomatic infection to fulminant fatal disease with fever, severe headache, muscle pain, chills, conjunctivitis, rash, jaundice, kidney failure and hemorrhagic episodes.

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What Causes Rat Fever?

Awareness has increased internationally over past decade that rat fever (leptospirosis) is a major important public health problem both in developing countries and industrialized countries. Leptospirosis is estimated to affect ten million people annually with case fatality rate up to 25%.

Rat fever got its name because in majority of cases the infection is spread from rat urine. Leptospira exist in rats without producing any disease in them. They shed leptospira in their urine for prolonged period of time. The organisms can survive in warm moist soil for several weeks.

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In humans leptosipra enters through cuts and cracks in the skin or intact mucus membrane of conjunctiva, vagina, and mouth. It is an occupational hazard for those working in sewers, slaughter houses and mines. Leptospirosis is not spread from human to human.

The incidence of leptospirosis is more during rainy season and during floods. Wading through flood water seems to be a predisposing factor.

Signs And Symptoms Of Rat Fever

Leptospirosis many times is misidentified because of its non-specific clinical presentation. It takes symptoms to manifest 7 to 10 days after the bacterium has entered the body.

In the beginning, the symptoms appear same as that of flu like illness.

• Fever with chills
• Severe headache
• Muscular pain and calf tenderness
• Redness of conjunctiva

Less common are,

• Sore throat
• Skin rash
• Low urine output

These manifestations subside after 5 to 7 days and the patient feels relaxed. But suddenly the symptoms appear after 1 to 3 days again and they may be more severe.

• It is manifested with jaundice and renal dysfunction. Jaundice can be severe but hepatic encephalopathy can be rare. In severe cases, 80% of patients may have acute renal failure.
• Subconjunctival hemorrhage, bleeding from nose, blood in cough, and bleeding from stomach and intestine may be present as complications.
• Other unusual symptoms may be enlargement of liver and spleen, diarrhea, and pain in joints.

If there is subconjunctival hemorrhage together with calf tenderness, with fever and jaundice; physician may think of leptospirosis as one of the probable cause.

Treatment Options For Rat Fever

Once the doctor confirms the fever as rat fever (leptospirosis) by doing several blood tests such as IgM –ELISA test, PCR test etc he may recommend antibiotics. Treatment is more effective if started within 7 days of onset of symptoms.

Patient can be treated at home if the vital signs such as pulse, blood pressure and respiration, urine output are normal and if there is no jaundice.

However, it is necessary to get hospitalized if vital signs are unstable and the patient has deteriorating mental alertness and difficulty in breathing.