Cat scratch disease

Cat scratch disease
A bacterial infection due to a cat scratch seen most often today in people with HIV. The disease characteristically presents with swollen lymph nodes (lymphadenitis), sore throat, fatigue, and fever, chills, sweats, vomiting, loss of appetite, and weight loss. There is usually a little bump (a papule) which may be pus-filled (a pustule) at the site of the scratch. Then more nodules appear on and under the skin. As the number of nodules increases, patients get sicker. In normal people the disease is self-limited and usually goes away by itself in a few weeks. It can also be treated with antibiotics. In persons with HIV/AIDS the disease (usually called bacillary angiomatosis) can cause severe inflammation of the brain, bone marrow, lymph nodes, lungs, spleen and liver. The disease can be fatal in persons with HIV. It can be easily treated with antibiotics such as erythromycin and doxycycline. Treatment is given until the skin lesions resolve, usually in 3 to 4 weeks. Bacillary angiomatosis is so characteristic today of AIDS that it is an AIDS defining disease, according to the CDC (Centers For Disease Control). A cat carrying the microbe does not show symptoms. It is not necessary to get rid of the cat. If someone in the household is at high risk, a test to detect the infection can be done and the cat can be treated. The disease is caused by a bacterium called Rochalimaea henselae, which was reclassified as Bartonella henselae, named for Diane Hensel, a microbiologist. The disease has also been called cat scratch fever, regional lymphadenitis, and benign lymphoreticulosis.

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cat scratch disease n an illness that is characterized by chills, slight fever, and swelling of the lymph glands and is caused by a gram-negative bacterium of the genus Bartonella (B. henselae syn. Rochalimaea henselae) transmitted esp. by a cat scratch called also cat scratch fever

Medical dictionary. 2011.

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  • cat-scratch disease — [kat′skrach΄] n. an ailment characterized by fever and swollen glands and believed to be caused by bacteria transmitted by the scratch or bite of a cat: also cat scratch fever …   English World dictionary

  • Cat scratch disease — For the Ted Nugent album, see Cat Scratch Fever. For the Nickelodeon cartoon, see Catscratch. Cat Scratch Disease Classification and external resources Micrograph …   Wikipedia

  • cat-scratch disease — /kat skrach /, Pathol. a disorder characterized by fever and swelling of the lymph glands, caused by a viral infection resulting from the scratch or bite of a cat. Also called cat scratch fever. * * * cat scratch disease or cat scratch fever «KAT …   Useful english dictionary

  • cat scratch disease —       bacterial infection in human beings caused by Bartonella henselae, which is transmitted by a cat (cat, domestic) bite or scratch. Transmission of the bacterium from cat to cat is thought to be by the cat flea. The clinical syndrome in the… …   Universalium

  • cat-scratch disease — a usually benign, self limited infectious disease of the regional lymph nodes, caused by Bartonella henselae and chiefly characterized by subacute, painful regional lymphadenitis and mild fever of short duration. It is most often associated with… …   Medical dictionary

  • cat scratch disease — noun a disease thought to be transmitted to humans by a scratch from a cat • Hypernyms: ↑disease * * * noun : an illness that is characterized by chilliness, slight fever, and swelling of the lymph glands and is assumed to be caused by a virus… …   Useful english dictionary

  • cat scratch disease — noun Date: 1952 an illness that is characterized by swelling of the lymph glands, fever, and chills and is caused by a bacterium (Bartonella henselae syn. Rochalimaea henselae) transmitted especially by a cat scratch called also cat scratch fever …   New Collegiate Dictionary

  • cat-scratch disease — /kat skrach /, Pathol. a disorder characterized by fever and swelling of the lymph glands, caused by a viral infection resulting from the scratch or bite of a cat. Also called cat scratch fever. * * * …   Universalium

  • cat scratch disease — noun a condition in humans caused by a bacterium, Bartonella henselae, carried by cats and entering the body through a scratch on the skin, causing fever and headache, swollen glands and occasionally a rash. Also, cat scratch fever …  

  • cat-scratch disease — (CSD) A loosely defined syndrome caused by either of the following gram negative bacilli: Bartonella (Rochalimaea) henselae or Afipia felis. The typical case of CSD is self limiting, with abatement of symptoms over a period of days to weeks …   Dictionary of microbiology

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