Couple from SP dies after fever, pain and spots on the body – 06/11/2023 – Health

A couple of lovers died days after having fever, pain and red spots on the body. The suspicion is Rocky Mountain spotted fever, dengue or leptospirosis. The three diseases are notifiable.

Dentist Mariana Giordano and pilot Douglas Pereira Costa were treated at private hospitals in the cities where they lived — she in the capital of São Paulo, and the boy in Jundiaí (58 km from São Paulo).

The epidemiological surveillance of the two municipalities were notified about the patients on Thursday (8). The couple began to have symptoms on June 3 and soon the condition worsened.

According to a note from the Jundiaí Epidemiological Surveillance, there is a report of passing through the rural area of ​​Campinas (93 km from São Paulo) before June 3, and then Monte Verde (MG) on June 3 and 4.

According to the press office of the State Department of Health, Mariana’s biological sample is already at the Adolfo Lutz Institute for diagnosis and Douglas’ sample is yet to be forwarded.

Rocky Mountain spotted fever is an acute febrile infectious disease. Its main symptoms are fever, severe headache, nausea and vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal and muscle pain, swelling and redness in the palms of the hands and soles of the feet, gangrene in the fingers and ears and paralysis of the limbs. It can be mild and severe, with a high fatality rate. It is caused by a bacteria of the genus Rickettsia, transmitted by tick bites. In Brazil, the main vector is the star tick, but any species can harbor the bacteria that cause Rocky Mountain spotted fever, such as the dog tick, according to the Ministry of Health.

Leptospirosis is transmitted through direct or indirect exposure to the urine of animals (mainly rats) infected by the Leptospira bacteria, which penetrates the skin with lesions, immersed for long periods in contaminated water or through mucous membranes. The incubation period can vary from 1 to 30 days and normally occurs between 7 and 14 days after exposure to risk situations. In the most severe cases, lethality reaches 40%. Fever, headache and muscle pain —especially in the calves—, lack of appetite, nausea and vomiting are the symptoms.

Dengue is transmitted by the Aedes aegypti mosquito and has four different serotypes. The period of the year with the highest transmission of the disease is from November to May. The main symptoms are high fever —above 38°C—, pain in the body, head, behind the eyes and joints, malaise, lack of appetite and red spots on the body.