title: Family outbreak of psittacosis with an exhumation-based diagnosis: following in the footsteps of Dr. House.
abstract: Diagnosis and treatment of the uncommon zoonotic infection psittacosis may be delayed or missed if a history of bird exposure is not obtained. Pulmonary infiltrates that persist or are refractory to usual therapy can be a clue to this diagnosis. An outbreak or cluster of cases may occur if there is a common source of the bacterium. If possible, examination of household members, both human and avian, might be helpful in making this diagnosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, University of Tennessee Health Science Center, Memphis, TN, USA.
authors.forename: Michael S
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Gelfand
authors.forename: Kerry O
authors.initials: KO
authors.lastname: Cleveland
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D061387:Chlamydial Pneumonia / Q000150:complications* / Q000635:transmission*; D003933:Diagnosis; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009956:Psittacosis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000635:transmission*