Q Fever

Q fever is an unusual infection. The pathogen is called Coxiella burnetii, and it normally lives in animals — in sheep, goats, cattle, sometimes in cats or dogs. It is transmitted through the air, through dust from stables, through raw milk, through contact with the amniotic fluid of pregnant animals. Often the infection runs silently and unnoticed. When it does show itself, it is usually with high fever, severe headaches, a stiff neck, and a noticeably slow pulse. Sometimes the lungs become inflamed. In rare cases the pathogen reaches the heart and lodges itself in the valves — a chronic endocarditis that takes months or years to reveal itself.