What is Colorado tick fever?
'''Colorado tick fever''' (CTF) is a [[Virus|viral]] infection ([[Coltivirus]]) transmitted from the bite of an infected [[Rocky Mountain wood tick]] (''Dermacentor andersoni''). It should not be confused with the bacterial tick-borne infection, [[Rocky Mountain spotted fever]]. CTF is transmitted to humans most commonly by the bite of an infected adult wood tick, and while there is no evidence of natural person-to-person transmission, rare cases of transmission by blood transfusion have been reported. In general, adult ticks are approximately the size of a sesame seed and nymphal ticks are approximately the size of a poppy seed. The [[Lyme disease]] bacterium, ''[[Borrelia burgdorferi]]'', is spread through the bite of infected ticks. Symptoms include: * fever up to 105°F. * chills. * severe headache. * light sensitivity. * muscle aches. * skin tenderness. * loss of appetite. {{biology-stub}} [[Category:Diseases caused by viruses]] [[Category:Diseases spread by insects]]