Rat-Bite Fever in Laboratory Personnel

Abstract

Summary

A few cases of rat-bite fever due to Streptobacillus moniliformis have been reported in laboratory workers. Since many laboratory rats carry the aetiological agent in the upper respiratory tract, the opportunity for human infections is high, and undiagnosed infections are probably commoner than is supposed. The symptoms and means of diagnosis of human cases are described, together with a brief account of the infection in laboratory animals. The human disease is also compared with rat-bite fever due to Spirillum minus, which on current evidence appears to be rarer than that due to Streptobacillus moniliformis.

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