Rocky Mountain spotted fever

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

• noun An acute infectious disease that is caused by the tick-borne bacterium Rickettsia rickettsii and is characterized by rash, muscle pains, and high fever. It is endemic throughout North America.

from The Century Dictionary.

• See tick-fever.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

• noun caused by rickettsial bacteria and transmitted by wood ticks