TEPHI Grand Rounds Seminar Series | History, Rats, Fleas, and Opossums: The Rise of Flea-Borne Typhus in Texas in the New Millennium
When & Where
November 20, 2025
3:00 PM - 4:00 PM
Virtual
Contact
Event Description
In this upcoming TEPHI Grand Rounds, Gregory Anstead, MD, PhD, will discuss flea-borne typhus (FBT) in Texas, including its symptoms, causes, and changing epidemiology. Caused by the bacteria Rickettsia typhi and R. felis, FBT is an undifferentiated febrile illness that can lead to respiratory, neurologic, renal, hepatic, or cardiac complications in about 25% of cases. Texas cases rose from 307 in the 1990s to 3,750 in the 2010s, a 12-fold increase. Population growth has brought more dogs, cats, and opossums, while warmer temperatures accelerate the flea life cycle and increase disease transmission.
Anstead is a professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at the University of Texas at San Antonio. His research interests include HIV clinical care, vector-borne and zoonotic infections, medical mycology, and the historical epidemiology of infectious diseases.
Registration Link
https://go.uth.edu/TEPHIGR_Registration
Additional Information (Download File)
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In this upcoming TEPHI Grand Rounds, Gregory Anstead, MD, PhD, will discuss flea-borne typhus (FBT) in Texas, including its symptoms, causes, and changing epidemiology. Caused by the bacteria Rickettsia typhi and R. felis, FBT is an undifferentiated febrile illness that can lead to respiratory, neurologic, renal, hepatic, or cardiac complications in about 25% of cases. Texas cases rose from 307 in the 1990s to 3,750 in the 2010s, a 12-fold increase. Population growth has brought more dogs, cats, and opossums, while warmer temperatures accelerate the flea life cycle and increase disease transmission.
Anstead is a professor of medicine in the Division of Infectious Diseases at the University of Texas at San Antonio. His research interests include HIV clinical care, vector-borne and zoonotic infections, medical mycology, and the historical epidemiology of infectious diseases.
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