Q Fever

Q fever is a zoonotic disease caused by Coxiella burnetti, a bacteria found world wide. Cattle, sheep and goats are the principle reservoirs of the disease.

Most human cases occur in veterinarians, meat plant workers and farmers that raise sheep and cattle. The organisms are excreted in milk, urine and feces.

These bacteria are tough, they resist heat, drying and common disinfectants and they live for long periods of time in the environment. They can also be transferred to humans by ticks.

Only one half of the people exposed to Coxiella burnetti develop disease. When they do, fevers up to 105F are common along with severe headaches, malaise, muscle aches, sore throat, chills, sweats, cough, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal and chest pain and confusion.

These symptoms last for 1-2 weeks. During this time some patients develop hepatitis. One or two percent of infected people die of the disease due to secondary heart inflammation (endocarditis) and liver failure.

Doxycycline is the treatment of choice for acute Q fever. Quinolone antibiotics such as ciprofloxacin also work well.