Bartonella elizabethae, formerly known as Rochalimaea elizabethae, is a bacterium in the genus Bartonella.[1] Like other Bartonella species, it causes the diseases bartonellosis.
Although the illnesses caused by Bartonella species other than the most common human pathogens — B. bacilliformis, B. quintana, and B. henselae — are not well-characterized individually, severe forms of bartonellosis present with endocarditis, lymphadenopathy, and neuroretinitis.[2] As with other Bartonella species, it can cause disease in animals,[3] and the reservoirs of B. elizabethae include dogs and rats.
B. elizabethae, like other rodent-borne Bartonella species, represents an emerging public health threat, especially in urban areas where rats are endemic.[4] Humans are an incidental host for the pathogen — direct transmission from dogs to humans is not well attested, and most human cases are contracted from ticks serving as a vector.[4] In cities, marginalized populations face greater risks: a 1992 study of the prevalence of bloodborne pathogens among homeless intravenous drug users in Los Angeles found an overall prevalence of 12.5% in this population.[5]
