Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever (RMSF) can be transmitted by needlestick.
Criteria for diagnosis:
(1) A patient has Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever (RMSF).
(2) Another person experiences a needlestick injury related to the patient.
(3) This person develops Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever (RMSF).
(4) All other routes of acquisition (ticks, environmental exposure) have been excluded.
Issues:
(1) If the initial patient is not diagnosed, then the exposed person may not get adequate antibiotic therapy.
(2) The risk of transmission increases with the depth of the injury and the volume of blood in the exposure as well as the number of organisms injected.
(3) The diagnosis may not be considered if the exposures occur in a region where RMSF is not seen with any frequency.
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