Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF) is a disease caused by the bacteria (germ) Rickettsia rickettsii. Where do cases of RMSF occur?Thispage,RockyMountainSpottedFever,ispartofTick-borneDiseasesshowmoreFactSheetsonInfectiousDiseasesThispage,RockyMountainSpottedFever,isofferedbyDepartmentofPublicHealthshowmoreBureauofInfectiousDiseaseandLaboratorySciencesRockyMountainSpottedFeverFactSheetaboutRockyMountainSpottedFeverWhatisRockyMountainSpottedFever?RockyMountainspottedfever(RMSF)isadiseasecausedbythebacteria(germ)Rickettsiarickettsii.WheredocasesofRMSFoccur?RMSFisararediseaseinMassachusetts. Between1995-2017,ninecaseswerereported. Thediseaseismostoftenreportedfromthesoutheasternpartofthestate,CapeCodandMartha’sVineyard.HowisRMSFspread?IntheNortheast,RMSFisspreadbythebiteofaninfecteddogtick,alsocalledtheeasternwoodtick. Thelongeratickremainsattachedandfeeding,thehigherthelikelihoodthatitmayspreadthebacteria. However,unlikeforothertick-bornediseases,thegermthatcausesRMSFoftenspreadswithin24hoursofthetickattaching.HowsoondosymptomsofRMSFappearafteratickbite?Symptomsusuallystarttoappearabout7daysafterthebiteofaninfectedtick,butcanbeginanywherebetween3and14days.WhatarethesymptomsofRMSF?Symptomsusuallybeginwithasuddenonsetoffeverandsevereheadache,andmayalsoincludedeepmusclepain,nauseaandvomiting,andlessfrequentlystomachpainandcough. Mostpeopledeveloparashontheirarmsandlegsabout3to5daysafterthefeverstarts. Thisrashoftenspreadstothepalms,soles,andovertherestofthebody.IstheretreatmentforRMSF?RMSFcanbetreatedwithantibiotics;however,seriouscomplicationsincludingdeathcanoccurifthediseaseisnotrecognizedandtreatedearly.WhatcanIdotolowermychancesofgettingRMSF,oranyotherdisease,fromticks?Preventionbeginswithyou!Takestepstoreduceyourchancesofbeingbittenbyanytick. Ticksaremostactiveduringwarmweather,generallylatespringthroughfall. However,tickscanbeoutanytimethattemperaturesareabovefreezing. Ticksclingtovegetationandaremostnumerousinbrushy,woodedorgrassyhabitats. Whenyouareoutsideinanar