Neonatal Scrub Typhus: A Case Report

Abstract

Scrub typhus called tsutsugamushi disease, is a mite-born acute febrile disease caused by Rickettsia tsutsugamushi. To our knowledge, neonatal scrub typhus has not been reported in the literature. We report on a 26-day-old newborn with aseptic meningitis. The newborn showed an increased specific 1gM antibody to R.tsutsugamushi conjointly with his mother's 1gM titer to the organism. This is the first case in the literature documenting neonatal scrub typhus and may be related to infection in the mother. CASE REPORT A 26-day-old male newborn was well until 4 days prior to this admission. He suffered from intermittent high fever, abdominal distention, and skin pallor.