The identification of murine typhus in Galveston, Texas, may signal the re-emergence of the disease in this port city, according to UTMB researchers. The researchers evaluated 18 adult patients who had presented with febrile illness to UTMB between February and December 2013. According to the researchers, the disease was endemic to Galveston until the introduction of dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, or DDT, in 1946 as a means of controlling rat ectoparasites. “The recent recognition of murine typhus in Galveston may reflect the re-emergence of R. typhi in rats; it may also reflect a cycle involving opossums and cats,” they wrote. “Additionally, R. felis may play a role as a serologically cross-reacting culprit of illness. Physicians and public health officials should be aware of this re-emerging threat. Furthermore, vector control is of utmost importance.” The news also appears in CDC-Emerging Infectious Diseases.