• 한국동물위생학회지
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• 제26권3호
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• pp.203-214
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• 2003

Scrub typhus and murine typhus are common endemic febrile illness in the fall in Korea. Scrub typhus is caused by Orientia tsutsugomushi, murine typhus is caused by Rickettsia typhi. Trombiculid mites are known as both the vector and the reservoir host of O tsutsugamushi, the mites which transmit O tsutsugomushi have been reported to be Leptotrombidium pallidum and L scutellare. The author carried out an epidemiological study of scrub typhus and murine typhus in Kyodong-Myeon, Kanghwa-Gun, Incheon in relation to the residents and the host rodents, such as their distribution, seroepidemiology, and population density of chigger mites. 1. Out of 900 residents, 33(3.7%) showed positive reaction to O tsutsugamushi, 24(2.7%) to R typhi. 2. In the seropositives to O tsutsugamushi or R typhi, between the sixties and the seventies of the age were dominant. 3. In the seropositives to O tsutsugamushi serotypically Gilliam was dominant. 4. Among the total 42 field rodents trapped by the sherman traps, 18 rodents were Apodemus agrarius(42.9%), 13 rodents were Crocidura lasiura(31.0%), 5 rodents were Musmusculus(11.9%), 2 rodents(4.8%) were Crocidura suaveolens, Rattus norvegicus, Tscherskia triton, respectively. 5. Out of 42 field rodents, 25 were parasitized by 4,419 chigger mites, showing 59.5% of the infestation rate and 98.8 of the chigger index. L pallidum parasitized in A agrarius, C lasiura, M musculus, R norvegicus and T triton, and L scutellare parasitized only C lasiura. 6. Antibodies in the sera of field rodents against O tsutsugamushi and R typhi were investigated by indirect immunofluorescent antibody technique. Positive rate of antibody against O tsutsugamushi were 11.9(5 of 42) and all of the positive is A agrarius. Antibody against R typhi was not detected. These results might provide the basic information for the management of scrub typhus and murine typhus in Kyodong-myeon, where the epidemiological studies on scrub typhus and murine typhus was not carried out enough.