leptospirosis

Infection with Leptospira interrogans.

- anicteric l. infection with one of the species of the Leptospira group, usually mild, with limited liver and kidney involvement, as opposed to Weil disease.

- l. icterohemorrhagica (ik′ter-o-hem-or-aj′i-ka) SYN: icterohemorrhagic fever.

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lep·to·spi·ro·sis .lep-tə-spī-'rō-səs n, pl -ro·ses -.sēz any of several diseases of humans and domestic animals (as cattle and dogs) that are caused by infection with spirochetes of the genus Leptospira called also lepto see STUTTGART DISEASE, WEIL'S DISEASE

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(Weil's disease)

n.

an infectious disease, caused by bacteria of the genus Leptospira (especially L. icterohaemorrhagiae), that occurs in rodents, dogs, and other mammals and may be transmitted to people whose work brings them into contact with these animals. The disease begins with a high fever and headache and may affect the liver (causing jaundice) or kidneys (resulting in renal failure); in some cases patients may go on to develop meningitis.

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lep·to·spi·ro·sis (lep″to-spi-roґsis) febrile illness caused by infection with one of the serovars of Leptospira interrogans. Numerous different mammals shed the organisms in their urine, and others become infected through contact with the urine or tissue of such animals or with contaminated water, soil, or vegetation. All serovars of L. interrogans are thought to be able to cause any of the syndromes, which vary from a mild carrier state to a fatal disease. Severe forms, such as Weil syndrome, usually are characterized by jaundice. Different forms of the disease were given different names depending on factors such as clinical features, host animal, geographic distribution, occupation of infected persons, and which serovar of the bacteria was first considered causative.