Los Angeles, CA: Sage. External links
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA):  Different Issues in Speech and Language Development. KidsHealth:Delay in Speech and Language
Early Identification of Speech-Language Delays and Disorders
The Listen Up Web-Language Development
YourChild: Speech and Language Delays and Disorders University of Michigan Health System
Before antibiotics were used, many cases resulted in death. If left untreated, streptobacillary rat-bite fever can result in infection in the lining of the heart, covering over the spinal cord and brain, or in the lungs. Any tissue or organ throughout the body may develop an abscess. Epidemiology
Rat-bite fever (RBF) is a zoonotic disease. It can be directly transmitted by rats, gerbils, and mice (the vectors) to humans by either a bite or scratch or it can be passed from rodent to rodent. The causative bacterial agent of RBF has also been observed in squirrels, ferrets, dogs, and pigs. The most common reservoir of the disease is rats because nearly all domestic and wild rats are colonized by the causative bacterial agent, Streptobacillus moniliformis. Most notably, the Black rat (Rattus rattus) and the Norwegian rat (Rattus norvegicus) are recognized as potential reservoirs due to their common use as laboratory animals or kept as pets. The bacteria Streptobacillus moniliformis is found in the rats upper respiratory tract. Most rats harbor the disease asymptomatically, and signs and symptoms rarely develop. It is estimated that 1 in 10 bites from a rat will result in developing RBF. A person is also at risk of acquiring the bacteria through touching contaminated surfaces with an open wound or mucous membrane or ingestion of contaminated water or food by rodent feces, though this is referred to as Haverhill Fever (epidemic arthritic erythema). RBF is not a contagious disease.