What is "spotted fever"

Spotted \Spot"ted\, a. Marked with spots; as, a spotted garment or character. ``The spotted panther.''
--Spenser.

Spotted fever (Med.), a name applied to various eruptive fevers, esp. to typhus fever and cerebro-spinal meningitis.

Spotted tree (Bot.), an Australian tree ( Flindersia maculosa); -- so called because its bark falls off in spots.

n. (context pathology English) any of various diseases causing fever and spots on the skin

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

A spotted fever is a type of tick-borne disease which presents on the skin. They are all caused by bacteria of the genus Rickettsia. Typhus is a group of similar diseases also caused by Rickettsia bacteria, but spotted fevers and typhus are different clinical entities.

Types of spotted fevers include:

• Mediterranean spotted fever
• Rocky Mountain spotted fever
• Queensland tick typhus
• Helvetica Spotted fever