| evidence of exposure to spotted fever group rickettsiae among arizona dogs outside a previously documented outbreak area. | since 2003, two communities in eastern arizona have experienced a sustained outbreak of rocky mountain spotted fever (rmsf), caused by rickettsia rickettsii, associated with transmission by rhipicephalus sanguineus, the brown dog tick; 70 human cases, including eight deaths, were reported from these communities during 2003 through 2008. in both of the affected communities, antibodies to spotted fever group rickettsiae (sfgr) were present in dogs before the notice of the first human cases, sugges ... | 2011 | 20042069 |