African tick-bite fever among international travelers--Oregon, 1998

In May 1998, the Oregon Health Division received a report from a local physician that nine persons developed annular skin lesions accompanied by influenza-like symptoms within 8 days of leaving southern Africa. All nine persons were members of a 34-person group from Oregon that traveled to Swaziland in April 1998 to participate in a 3-week humanitarian construction project. This report describes two cases of African tick-bite fever (ATBF) diagnosed in this group and underscores the importance of pretravel counseling about vectorborne illnesses and post-travel recognition of imported rickettsial diseases.