What are the most common symptoms of acute Q fever?

• A. Cough without fever
• B. Rash and joint pain
• C. Fever with pneumonia or hepatitis
• D. Abdominal pain only

Answer: (C)

Acute Q fever most often presents as a febrile illness, and the typical clinical picture involves fever with involvement of the lungs or liver. Pneumonia is a common respiratory manifestation, and hepatitis represents hepatic involvement that frequently accompanies the infection. Because fever with pneumonia or hepatitis reflects the common organ-system involvement seen in acute Q fever, this combination is the best match for the usual presentation. Rash and joint pain are not common features of acute Q fever, and abdominal pain by itself is not a characteristic presentation, so those options are less consistent with how the disease tends to present clinically.