Anaplasmosis is an example of a bacterial infection that can be transmitted to animals and humans via ticks. The culprit is the bacterium Anaplasma phagocytophilum. This bacterium infects white blood cells and can affect the liver, kidneys, and central nervous system. There are also other Anaplasma bacteria, but they only cause diseases in animals. Prevent anaplasmosis due to a tick bite by wearing tick-repellent clothing during a walk in the woods. Below you will read more about, among other things, the diagnosis and treatment of anaplasmosis.

What are Anaplasma bacteria?

Anaplasma bacteria are microorganisms that can only live and reproduce in the body cells of animals or humans. This group of bacteria resembles those of the Rickettsia and Ehrlichia groups. These bacteria can also be transmitted to animals and humans by ticks.

Anaplasma phagocytophilum is the only Anaplasma bacterium that can make not only animals but also humans ill. This bacterium causes the disease Human Granulocytic Anaplasmosis (HGA); this disease is not transmissible from person to person.

The bacterium Anaplasma phagocytophilum is present in one to two percent of Dutch ticks. In the Netherlands, only one (described) case of a patient with an infection from this bacterium is known.

What is Anaplasmosis?

Anaplasmosis is a disease resulting from an infection by an Anaplasma bacterium. HGA is the only anaplasmosis that occurs not only in animals but also in humans.

After a bite from a tick infected with anaplasmosis, the Anaplasma bacterium nests in the white blood cells of a human or animal. Through the bloodstream, the bacterium circulates the body reaching various organs, such as the bone marrow, lymph nodes, spleen, and liver. In these organs, inflammatory reactions then occur.

The incubation period for anaplasmosis is a minimum of five and a maximum of sixty days.

What are the symptoms of Anaplasmosis?

Anaplasmosis is characterized by a flu-like feeling, fever, and sometimes severe headaches, muscle pain, joint pain, and fatigue. After a few days, these symptoms usually disappear on their own. Only in exceptional cases does anaplasmosis lead to a more severe course of the disease, such as in patients with a severely disturbed immune system.

In a slightly more severe course of the disease than average, there may be functional disorders of the kidney and liver. Blood clotting and the central nervous system can also be affected.

How is Anaplasmosis diagnosed?

The initial symptoms of anaplasmosis are similar to those of the flu. To establish that more is going on than an innocent viral infection like the flu, it is important to determine if the patient has been bitten by a tick. Such a bite can be an indication of an Anaplasma infection, especially in areas where this infection is common. Unfortunately, most people do not remember a bite. The skin reaction of a tick bite is mild in most people; therefore, such a bite is often not noticed.

Thorough research is always required to determine whether the complaints are caused by anaplasmosis or something else. Sometimes the Anaplasma bacterium that causes HGA (the Anaplasma phagocytophilum) is visible in a blood smear. The diagnosis of HGA can then be made directly. If this is not successful with a smear, further research will follow. Such as research into the presence of antibodies against HGA.

How is Anaplasmosis treated?

Anaplasma is an obligate intracellular bacterium. This means that it hides in the cells of its host. Because of this, our immune system can hardly reach and fight the bacterium. For the same reason, not all antibiotics work against anaplasmosis.

The standard treatment for both anaplasmosis and ehrlichiosis is the administration of the antibiotic doxycycline. These medications can be taken orally (in the form of a tablet or capsule). Patients with anaplasmosis usually respond quickly to this antibiotic. If, despite taking doxycycline, the patient still has a fever after about three days, the diagnosis of anaplasmosis should be reconsidered.

Many patients with anaplasmosis also recover without treatment. The complaints are usually limited to 'flu-like symptoms' and disappear within a few days.

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