Diagnosis for spirillary rat bite fever is by direct visualization or culture of spirilla from blood smears or tissue from lesions or lymph nodes. Prevention
Eliminating exposure is very important when it comes to disease prevention. When handling rodents or cleaning areas where rodents have been, contact between hand and mouth should be avoided. Hands and face should be washed after contact and any scratches both cleaned and antiseptics applied. The effect of chemoprophylaxis following rodent bites or scratches on the disease is unknown. No vaccines are available for these diseases. Improved conditions to minimize rodent contact with humans are the best preventive measures. Animal handlers, laboratory workers, and sanitation and sewer workers must take special precautions against exposure. Wild rodents, dead or alive, should not be touched and pets must not be allowed to ingest rodents. Those living in the inner cities where overcrowding and poor sanitation cause rodent problems are at risk from the disease. Half of all cases reported are children under 12 living in these conditions. Treatment
Treatment with antibiotics is the same for both types of infection. The condition responds to penicillin, and where allergies to it occur, erythromycin or tetracyclines are used. Prognosis
When proper treatment is provided for patients with rat-bite fever, the prognosis is positive. Without treatment, the infection usually resolves on its own, although it may take up to a year to do so. A particular strain of rat-bite fever in the United States can progress and cause serious complications that can be potentially fatal.
Rat-bite fever (RBF) is an acute, febrile human illness caused by bacteria transmitted by rodents, in most cases, which is passed from rodent to human by the rodents urine or mucous secretions. Alternative names for rat-bite fever include streptobacillary fever, streptobacillosis, spirillary fever, bogger, and epidemic arthritic erythema. It is a rare disease spread by infected rodents and caused by two specific types of bacteria:

Streptobacillus moniliformis, the only reported bacteria that causes RBF in North America (streptobacillary RBF)
Spirillum minus, common in Asia (spirillary RBF, also known as sodoku). Most cases occur in Japan, but specific strains of the disease are present in the United States, Europe, Australia, and Africa.Some cases are diagnosed after patients were exposed to the urine or bodily secretions of an infected animal. These secretions can come from the mouth, nose, or eyes of the rodent. The majority of cases are due to the animals bite. It can also be transmitted through food or water contaminated with rat feces or urine. Other animals can be infected with this disease, including weasels, gerbils, and squirrels. Household pets such as dogs or cats exposed to these animals can also carry the disease and infect humans. If a person is bitten by a rodent, it is important to quickly wash and cleanse the wound area thoroughly with antiseptic solution to reduce the risk of infection. Symptoms and signs
Symptoms are different for every person depending on the type of rat-bite fever with which the person is infected.