Main Entry: Rocky Moun·tain spotted fever

Pronunciation: \ˈräk-ē-ˈmau̇nt-^ən-\

Function: noun

: an acute bacterial disease that is characterized by chills, fever, prostration, pains in muscles and joints, and a red purple eruption and that is caused by a bacterium of the genus Rickettsia (R. rickettsii) usually transmitted by ixodid ticks and especially by the American dog tick and Rocky Mountain wood tick