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Leptospirosis

Noel Dunn, MD and Marc-Eli Medina Faldas, Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine, Bachelor of Arts in Computer Science Reviewed 04/2024
 


BASICS

DESCRIPTION

  • Zoonotic disease caused by Leptospira interrogans, a spirochete bacterium

  • Spread via contact with infected water, animal urine, or infected animal tissue; outbreaks common during incr...

DIAGNOSIS

  • Infection can result in four broad clinical manifestations:

    • Self-limiting influenza-like infection that resolves in 1 to 3 weeks

    • Weil disease—severe form of leptospirosis associated with renal...

TREATMENT

GENERAL MEASURES

  • Although most cases are self-limited and there is no decrease in mortality with antimicrobial treatment, it is currently recommended to treat all cases with antibiotics. Anti...

ONGOING CARE

FOLLOW-UP RECOMMENDATIONS

  • Continue to monitor for evidence of severe disease following resolution of febrile stage.

  • No indication for test of cure following treatment

Patient Monitoring

See “...

REFERENCES

1
Rajapakse S. Leptospirosis: clinical aspects. Clin Med (Lond). 2022;22(1):14–17. doi: 10.7861/clinmed.2021-0784. PMCID: PMC8813018. PMID: 35078790.
2
Sykes JE, Reagan KL, Nally JE, et al. Ro...

ADDITIONAL READING

  

CODES

ICD10

  • A27 Leptospirosis

  • A27.8 Other forms of leptospirosis

  • A27.89 Other forms of leptospirosis

  • A27.9 Leptospirosis

  • A27.0 Leptospirosis icterohemorrhagica

  • A27.81 Aseptic meningitis in leptospirosis

SNOMED

CLINICAL PEARLS

  • Consider leptospirosis in patients with fresh water exposure who develop fevers, conjunctival suffusion, and/or cough.

  • Microscopic agglutination test (MAT) remains the gold standard for...

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