Identification of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus in ticks collected from patients.

The cases of two patients (a husband and wife) with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) are reported herein. Both patients had a history of recent tick bite and displayed typical clinical SFTS symptoms including fever, thrombocytopenia, and leukopenia. The diagnosis was laboratory-confirmed by the provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The husband died while the wife survived. SFTS virus was eventually identified in ticks collected from the couple.