恙虫病是由恙虫病东方体引起的自然疫源性疾病。临床表现包括发烧，皮疹，咬伤部位焦痂，严重者可发生肺、脑、心脏等并发症甚至死亡。其中，急性肺损伤是最常见的并发症。恙虫病早期症状与其他急性发热性疾病相似，临床上很难鉴别。因此，快速准确的诊断对于正确治疗该病和预防并发症的发生至关重要。目前，恙虫病的检测方法主要包括血清学和分子生物学两类，而有局限性的免疫荧光测定法仍然是该病检测的“金标准”。近年来，分子生物学技术在恙虫病实验室诊断中的应用有效提高了检测方法的敏感度和特异度。分子生物学方法亦是未来恙虫病病原体检测的重要研究方向。“,”Tsutsugamushi disease is a natural focus disease caused by Orientia tsutsugamushi. The clinical manifestations of tsutsugamushi disease include fever, rash, and eschar at the bite site. Serious complications or even death can be caused in severe cases and acute lung injury is the most frequent. Early detection is difficult due to the similarity of symptoms with other acute febrile illness. Rapid and accurate diagnosis are essential for proper treatment and prevention of lethal complications. At present, the main detection methods for tsatsugamushi disease are serological methods and molecular techniques. The immunofluorescence assay, with all of its limitations, remains known as the 'gold standard′ diagnostic method. Recently, the development and application of molecular biology technology has improved the efficiency and accuracy of detection methods effectively. Development of molecular biology methods is an important direction for future research on orientia tsutsugamushi detection.