Browsing by Author "de Sousa, R"
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- Rare Case of Rickettsiosis Caused by Rickettsia Monacensis, Portugal, 2021Publication . de Sousa, R; dos Santos, ML; Cruz, C; Almeida, V; Garrote, AR; Ramirez, F; Seixas, D; Manata, MJ; Maltez, FWe report a case of rickettsiosis caused by Rickettsia monacensis in an immunocompetent 67-year-old man in Portugal who had eschar, erythematous rash, and an attached Ixodes ricinus tick. Seroconversion and eschar biopsy led to confirmed diagnosis by PCR. Physicians should be aware of this rare rickettsiosis, especially in geographic regions with the vector.
- Rickettsial Infection Caused by Accidental Conjunctival InoculationPublication . Brissos, J; de Sousa, R; Santos, AS; Gouveia, CThe most common transmission route of tick-borne Rickettsia is through tick bite; nevertheless, other transmission routes should also be considered. We report a case of rickettsial infection in a 15-year-old boy caused by accidental contamination of the conjunctiva through the infected fluid of a crushed engorged tick removed from a dog. Right eye pain, conjunctival hyperaemia with mucopurulent exudate, chemosis and eyelid oedema were the first signs and symptoms. Two days later, the boy developed fever, myalgia, headache, abdominal pain and was vomiting; physical examination showed multiple cervical adenopathies but no rash. He was treated with doxycycline (200 mg/day) for 7 days with progressive resolution of clinical signs. Rickettsial infection was confirmed by immunofluorescence assay with serological seroconversion in two consecutive samples. Rickettsia conorii or Rickettsia massiliae were the possible causal agents since they are the Rickettsia spp found in the Rhipicephalus sanguineus dog tick in Portugal.