Seroprevalence to Coxiella burnetii in Patients with Acute Febrile Episodes during 1993.
- Author:
Kwang Don JUNG
1
;
Won Jong JANG
;
Jong Hyun KIM
;
Seung Hyun LEE
;
Ik Sang KIM
;
Myung Sik CHOI
;
Yun Won KIM
;
Yon Il HWANG
;
Kyung Hee PARK
Author Information
1. Department of Microbiology, College of Medicine, Kon-Kuk University, Chungju, Chungbuk, Korea. kyunghee.park@kku.ac.kr
- Publication Type:Original Article
- Keywords:
C. burnetii;
Q fever;
Rickettsia;
Sero-epidemiological survey;
Korea
- MeSH:
Antibodies;
Coxiella burnetii*;
Coxiella*;
Diagnosis;
Fluorescent Antibody Technique, Indirect;
Humans;
Korea;
Neorickettsia sennetsu;
Prevalence;
Q Fever;
Rickettsia;
Rickettsia typhi;
Seroepidemiologic Studies*;
Ticks
- From:Journal of Bacteriology and Virology
2002;32(4):299-306
- CountryRepublic of Korea
- Language:Korean
-
Abstract:
Coxiella burnetii is the etiological agent of Q fever, that may occur either acutely or the chronically. To understand the seroepidemiological patterns of C. burnetii infection in Korea, we examined a total of 3,178 sera from patients with acute febrile episodes by using indirect immunofluorescence assay (IFA) for detectable antibodies to C. burnetii and other eight rickettsial antigens. The IFA seropositivity>or=1:20 for C. burnetii phase II was 11.5% (368 out of 3,178 sera). The co-existence of antibodies to other rickettsial antigens was found in 216 out of the 368 positive sera. Thirty-seven point five percent (n=138) had antibodies to R. tsutsugamushi (cutoff>or=1:20), 16% (n=59) to Ehrlichia sennetsu, 14.9% (n=55) to Rickettsia typhi, 13.5% (n=50) to R. akari, 11.4% (n=42) to R. japonica, 8.9% (n=33) to R. prowazekii, 7.6% (n=28) to R. sibirica, and 6.7% (n=25) to R. conorii by IFA, respectively. These results are consistent with previous reports documenting diverse serum cross-reactivity in chronic Q fever. Therefore we excluded the samples that reacted to other rickettsial antigens at same or higher titers than to C. burnetii, resulting in the seropositive rate of 4.1%. The serological prevalence was 2% (n=64) when the conventional cut-off titer of 1:80 was used. Our results suggest that infections with C. burnetii are more prevalent than expected previously and should be differentially diagnosised for febrile illness occurring after exposure to ticks or other vectors.
