Unusual Organisms

Borrelia burgdorferi

Lyme disease

Tick-borne

Borrelia recurrentis

Recurrent fever

Louse-borne

Mycoplasma pneumoniae

Walking pneumonia

Crowded settings

Mycoplasma hominis

Non-STI → normal flora of genital tract

Mycoplasma genitalium

STI

Men: nonchlamydial nongonococcal urethristis (NGU)

Women: Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID)

Ureaplasma ureolyticum

Common in urinary and reproductive tract

Overgrowth → inflammation

Treponema pallidum subsp. endemicum

Endemic Syphilis

Ulcerative lesions on oropharyngeal mucosa with split papules

Treponema pallidium subsp. pertenue

Yaws

elevated, granulomatous nodules → Hyperkeratoric papilloma

Treponema carateum

Pinta

Scaliing painful papules → erythematous rash → plaques

Rickettsia rickettsii

Tick-borne → American dog tick Dermacentor variabilis/andersoni

Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever

Rickettsia typhi

Flea-borne Typhus → Endemic typhus → Murine Typhus

Rickettsia prowazekii

Louse-borne/Epidemic Typhus

Reactivation: Brill-Zinsser Disease

Orientia tsutsugamishi

Mite-borne

Scrub Typhus

Leptospira interrogans

Leptospirosis

Urine of infected animals from water/soil

Hurricanes/flooding area high risk

Bartonella henselae

Primary agent of Cat Scratch Disease

Afipia felis

Small percentage of Cat Scratch Disease

Bartonella quintana

Trench Fever

Lice-borne → close contact/person to person

Bartonella bacilliformis

Carrión’s Disease

Sand flies

Oroya fever → Peruvian warts

Streptobacillus moniliformis

Rate bite disease

Spirilium minus

Rate bite fever in Asia

Coxiella burnetii

Q fever

Consuming raw dairy products

Ehrlichia/Anaplasma (HME and HGA)

Tick-borne

Infects WBC:

• HME: monocytes

• HGA: neutrophils

HME → rash → Lone star tick

HGA → no rash → Black legged deer tick

Chlamydia trachomatis

STI

Infectious urethritis, cervicitis, lymphomogranuloma vereneum (LGV), major outer membrane protein (MOMP), PID, Reiter syndrome, trachoma

Transmitted during labor and delivery, perinatal period

Chlamydiophila psittaci

Psittacosis

affects birds → humans infected by bird droppings

Upper resp. tract infection

Chlyamydiophilia pneumoniae

Resp tract, ear, sinus infections, sore throat

Serious rare complications → encephalitis, myocarditis, worsening asthma

Legionella pneumophila

Spread through water systems and aerosolized water

Pontiac fever

BCYE pearls