Clinical Profile, Severity Markers, and Outcomes of Hospitalized Patients With Scrub Typhus in North India: A...

Scrub typhus is an important cause of acute febrile illness in India, with often devastating complications in hospitalized patients. These complications contribute to morbidity and mortality if the condition is not diagnosed early and treated. A prospective observational study was conducted in the Department of General Medicine at a tertiary care teaching hospital in North India from June 2024 to May 2025 and included 35 patients with confirmed scrub typhus. Laboratory parameters, complications, and outcomes were analyzed. Data were analyzed statistically using IBM SPSS Statistics version 25.0. The chi-square or Fisher's exact test was used to test associations with categorical variables. The mean age of patients was 45 ± 16 years, with 20 of 35 patients (57.1%) being male. All 35 patients (100%) had fever, while 24 (68.6%) had myalgia and 23 (65.7%) had headache as the main presenting complaints. An eschar was identified in 10 (28.6%) patients. Major complications included acute kidney injury (AKI) in 10 (28.6%) patients, acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) in 7 (20.0%), and multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS) in 11 (31.4%). Thirteen (37.1%) patients required ICU admission, and 4 (11.4%) died during hospitalization. There was a significant association of MODS, ARDS, and AKI with mortality (P < 0.001, P < 0.01, and P < 0.05, respectively). In hospitalized cases, scrub typhus was associated with significant complications. Morbidity and mortality can be minimized with early clinical suspicion, prompt diagnosis, and timely use of doxycycline-based therapy.