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Treatment and prevention of relapsing typhoid fever
Medical expert of the article
Last reviewed: 06.07.2025
Treatment of relapsing louse typhus is carried out for 7-10 days with one of the antibiotics that act on Borrelia. Tetracyclines are considered the drugs of choice: doxycycline 100 mg twice a day or tetracycline 0.5 g four times a day.
Alternative antibacterial drugs include erythromycin at a daily dose of 1 g and benzylpenicillin at 2-3 million U/day intramuscularly.
At the same time, infusion detoxification treatment for relapsing louse typhus is prescribed.
It should be borne in mind that after the start of treatment with antibiotics (especially benzylpenicillin), an exacerbation of the Jarisch-Hersheimer reaction is possible.
Convalescents are discharged from the hospital no earlier than 3 weeks after the final normalization of body temperature.
[ What is the prognosis for louse-borne relapsing fever?
Relapsing louse typhus has a favorable prognosis if treatment is started in a timely manner. Unfavorable prognostic symptoms of relapsing louse typhus are intense jaundice, massive bleeding, and cardiac arrhythmia.
How to prevent louse relapsing fever?
Specific prevention of louse-borne relapsing fever has not been developed.
Combating pediculosis, early detection and isolation of patients, their urgent hospitalization and chamber disinfection of things, sanitary treatment of contacts, for whom medical observation is established with daily thermometry for 25 days after the patient’s hospitalization.