RELAPSING FEVER - A DIFFERENTIAL-DIAGNOSIS TO MALARIA

A 20-year-old man who had spent several weeks in Asia suffered several attacks of fever, each lasting 1 day in a cyclic pattern. Initially h e was suspected to have malaria, but no parasites were found in a bloo d smear. When he was readmitted to the hospital with high fever and sh ivering, Borrelia spirochaetes were detected in a blood smear, leading to a diagnosis of relapsing fever. He recovered immediately when trea ted with tetracyclin.