Epidemic typhus

Epidemic typhus is a disease caused by the bacterium Rickettsia prowazekii. It is one of the diseases known as Typhus, the other is endemic typhus. Sometimes it is mistaken for an unrelated disease with a similar name, Typhoid fever. The disease is spread by lice and fleas.^[1] Without treatment, as many as 60% of people who get the disease could die.^[1]

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1} "Typhus - PubMed Health". ncbi.nlm.nih.gov. 2011. Retrieved 6 July 2011.