What Is Typhus?

 Typhus is a disease caused by an infection with the Rickettsia bacteria. Fleas, mites (chiggers), lice, or ticks transmit it when they bite you. Fleas, mites, lice, and ticks are types of invertebrate animals known as arthropods. When infected arthropods bite someone, they may leave the bacteria that cause typhus behind. Scratching the bite opens the skin and allows the bacteria to enter the bloodstream. Once in the bloodstream, the bacteria reproduce and grow.

There are three different types of typhus:


epidemic (or louse-borne) typhus
endemic typhus
scrub typhus