Definition

1. Noun:
   • A severe febrile disease characterized by skin rashes or spots: "spotted fever" refers to any of several acute infectious diseases that cause high fever and are marked by the appearance of spots or a rash on the skin. Historically, this term has been applied to different illnesses, including certain forms of typhus and meningitis.

Examples of Usage

• Noun:
  • Rocky Mountain spotted fever is a serious bacterial disease spread by ticks.
  • Before modern medicine, many people died from spotted fevers.
  • The patient was diagnosed with a spotted fever after presenting with a high temperature and a distinctive rash.

Advanced Usage

• As a medical/archaic term: The term "spotted fever" is often used in historical or specific medical contexts to describe diseases with similar symptoms. It is less common in general modern usage, where more specific disease names are preferred.
  • In the 19th-century medical journals, "spotted fever" was a common but frightening diagnosis.

Variants and Related Words

• Rocky Mountain spotted fever (n): A specific, potentially fatal bacterial disease caused by , transmitted by ticks.
  • Preventing tick bites is crucial to avoid Rocky Mountain spotted fever.
• Meningococcal meningitis: In some historical contexts, "spotted fever" was used to refer to this form of bacterial meningitis.
  • The outbreak was initially called spotted fever before it was identified as meningitis.

Synonyms

• Typhus (in some historical contexts): A group of infectious diseases that can cause fever and rash.
• Febrile exanthem: A more general medical term for a fever accompanied by a skin eruption.

Related Phrases

• Boutonneuse fever: Also known as Mediterranean spotted fever, another rickettsial disease.
  • While on vacation, he contracted Boutonneuse fever, another type of spotted fever.

Noun

1. any of several severe febrile diseases characterized by skin rashes or spots on the skin