Babesiosis

Babesiosis or piroplasmosis is a malaria-like parasitic disease caused by infection with a eukaryotic parasite in the order Piroplasmida, typically a Babesia or Theileria, in the phylum Apicomplexa. Human babesiosis transmission via tick bite is most common in the Northeastern and Midwestern United States and parts of Europe, and sporadic throughout the rest of the world. It occurs in warm weather. People can get infected with Babesia parasites by the bite of an infected tick, by getting a blood transfusion from an infected donor of blood products, or by congenital transmission (an infected mother to her baby). Ticks transmit the human strain of babesiosis, so it often presents with other tick-borne illnesses such as Lyme disease. After trypanosomes, Babesia is thought to be the second-most common blood parasite of mammals. They can have major adverse effects on the health of domestic animals in areas without severe winters. In cattle the disease is known as Texas cattle fever or redwater. Signs and symptoms Half of all children and a quarter of previously healthy adults with Babesia infection are asymptomatic. When people do develop symptoms, the most common are fever and hemolytic anemia, symptoms that are similar to those of malaria. People with symptoms usually become ill 1 to 4 weeks after the bite, or 1 to 9 weeks after transfusion of contaminated blood products. A person infected with babesiosis gradually develops malaise and fatigue, followed by a fever. Hemolytic anemia, in which red blood cells are destroyed and removed from the blood, also develops. Chills, sweats, and thrombocytopenia are also common symptoms. Symptoms may last from several days to several months. Less common symptoms and physical exam findings of mild-to-moderate babesiosis: In more severe cases, symptoms similar to malaria occur, with fevers up to 40.5 °C (105 °F), shaking chills, and severe anemia (hemolytic anemia). Organ failure may follow, including adult respiratory distress syndrome. Sepsis in people who have had a splenectomy can occur rapidly, consistent with overwhelming post-splenectomy infection. Severe cases are also more likely to occur in the very young, very old, and persons with immunodeficiency, such as HIV/AIDS patients.