An 18-year-old local student has become this year’s seventh suspected case of Tsutsugamushi Disease (also known as scrub typhus), according to a statement by the Health Bureau (SSM) yesterday.
The statement noted that the male victim, who developed pain on the left side of his groin last Friday, sought treatment in the public Conde de São Januário Hospital Centre on Monday after coming down with a fever. The statement added that during a medical examination, the patient was found to have a soybean-sized eschar on the left side of his groin, and was later diagnosed with scrub typhus.
The statement said that the victim was in stable condition, and had meanwhile left the hospital.
The statement pointed out that the victim had passed through a grassland during a trip in August to Changsha, capital of Hunan province, with his family. The statement quoted the patient as saying that he had not been to a country park in Macau for activities such as hiking during the incubation period, adding that his family members had not developed similar symptoms.
In the statement, the bureau urged members of the public to take the necessary precautions when having outdoor activities at grasslands in parks.
According to the statement, scrub typhus is an acute infectious disease caused by bites from larval mites or chiggers carrying Rickettsia Tsutsugamushi. Rodents living in grasslands with high temperatures, humidity and weeds are the most common reservoirs of Rickettsia Tsutsugamushi.
Those who suffer from scrub typhus may develop symptoms such as fever, headache, muscle pain, and rashes, or show serious complications, such as pneumonia and meningitis which in serious cases can cause respiratory failure and death.
