Tickpedia
Tick-borne illness

Spotted fever rickettsiosis

Spotted fever rickettsiosis is a group of bacterial infections — Rocky Mountain spotted fever among them — spread by dog and wood ticks across the US.

Cases · 26,672Carried by 4 ticksPeak · JuneView risk map →
Continental risk map
Where Spotted fever rickettsiosis hits hardest
H3 hexagon heatmap of 26,672 reported cases across 51 states.
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State-by-state cases

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Alaska — no CDC-reported casesAKMaine — 28 casesMEVermont — 29 casesVTNew Hampshire — 30 casesNHWashington — 22 casesWAIdaho — 43 casesIDMontana — 25 casesMTNorth Dakota — 34 casesNDMinnesota — 34 casesMNWisconsin — 117 casesWIMichigan — 81 casesMINew York — 283 casesNYMassachusetts — 31 casesMAOregon — 31 casesORNevada — 34 casesNVWyoming — 12 casesWYSouth Dakota — 66 casesSDIowa — 90 casesIAIllinois — 681 casesILIndiana — 340 casesINOhio — 285 casesOHPennsylvania — 147 casesPANew Jersey — 298 casesNJConnecticut — 54 casesCTCalifornia — 91 casesCAUtah — 44 casesUTColorado — 20 casesCONebraska — 155 casesNEMissouri — 2,522 casesMOKentucky — 1,080 casesKYWest Virginia — 102 casesWVVirginia — 1,276 casesVAMaryland — 492 casesMDDelaware — 56 casesDERhode Island — 29 casesRIArizona — 284 casesAZNew Mexico — 8 casesNMKansas — 872 casesKSArkansas — 5,602 casesARTennessee — 2,418 casesTNNorth Carolina — 3,428 casesNCSouth Carolina — 410 casesSCDistrict of Columbia — 6 casesDCHawaii — 1 caseHIOklahoma — 609 casesOKLouisiana — 120 casesLAMississippi — 411 casesMSAlabama — 3,078 casesALGeorgia — 290 casesGATexas — 332 casesTXFlorida — 141 casesFLCASES · PER STATE
none
most cases

26,672 reported cases across 51 states.

Top 8 states
#NameCases
1Arkansas5,602
2North Carolina3,428
3Alabama3,078
4Missouri2,522
5Tennessee2,418
6Virginia1,276
7Kentucky1,080
8Kansas872

Seasonality

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JFMAMJJASOND

Cases peak in June — about 4,290 cases reported.

MonthCases
Jan323
Feb377
Mar667
Apr1,493
May3,100
Jun4,290
Jul3,815
Aug2,884
Sep2,028
Oct1,128
Nov541
Dec353

Year-over-year

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18,72514,0449,3634,681020192022REPORTED CASES · PER YEAR

Ticks that carry it

4 known
TickScientific nameOne-liner
American dog tickDermacentor variabilisThe American dog tick transmits Rocky Mountain spotted fever and tularemia across the eastern two-thirds of the US and Pacific Coast.
Brown dog tickRhipicephalus sanguineusThe brown dog tick is the only tick that completes its life cycle indoors, infesting homes and kennels worldwide and spreading spotted fever.
Cayenne tickAmblyomma cajennenseThe Cayenne tick is a Central and South American species and a primary vector of Brazilian spotted fever, one of the deadliest rickettsioses.
Rocky Mountain wood tickDermacentor andersoniThe Rocky Mountain wood tick carries spotted fever, Colorado tick fever, and a saliva neurotoxin that causes reversible tick paralysis.

Pathogens that cause it

0 known

Pathogen association not yet seeded for Spotted fever rickettsiosis.

Wild facts

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