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Tick-borne Disease in San Diego County

November 25, 2013 This alert describes a recently recognized human pathogen detected in ticks in San Diego County, Rickettsia philipii (formerly known as Rickettsia 364D), and provides an update on other tick-borne diseases in the region. An eschar-associated illness caused by Spotted Fever group (SFG) Rickettsia, R. philipii was first recognized in a Northern California resident in 2008. Cases have since been reported in both adults and children. A bite from the Pacific Coast tick (Dermacentor occidentalis) can transmit the infection. The most prominent clinical feature of R. philipii infection is development ...