New spotted fever test registered in Brazil
Brazil’s drug authority Anvisa has approved the registration of a new test for the diagnosis of rocky mountain spotted fever.
The product comes as part of a kit manufactured by the Molecular Biology Institute of Paraná state and is the second test authorized in the country for this purpose. Through polymerase chain reaction (PCR), it detects genetic material from the bacteria transmitted by the bite of the Cayenne tick (Amblyomma cajennense).
As required by Anvisa, the test must be carried out by a health provider with specific knowledge in molecular biology.
Rocky mountain spotted fever, or RMSF, cannot spread directly from person to person or through contact with infected animals.
Humans may serve as hosts of the tick, but the preferred hosts of the bacteria causing RMSF, in turn, are horses. They can also parasitize cattle, domestic animals, and wildlife.
Symptoms include fever, headaches, muscle pain, malaise, nausea, vomiting, bleeding, and reddish skin rashes.
