Abstract |
Rickettsia typhi and R. felis are the etiological agents of murine typhus and flea-borne spotted fever, respectively. Both are emerging acute febrile zoonotic diseases for which fleas are vectors; they also have similar clinical characteristics and global distribution. In 2005, we identified the circulation of murine typhus in 6 towns within the mountainous coffee-growing area north of Caldas, Colombia. We now report the specific seroprevalence against R. typhi and R. felis, and associated risk factors in 7 towns of this province. The combined seroprevalence against the 2 flea-borne rickettsioses is the highest yet reported in the literature: 71.7% (17.8% for R. felis, 25.2% for R. typhi, and 28.7% for both). We also report a prospective analysis of 26 patients with a febrile illness compatible with rickettsioses, including murine typhus; 9 of these patients had a rickettsiosis. This supports our sero-epidemiological results and highlights the diagnostic complexity of febrile syndromes in this region.
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Authors | Marylin Hidalgo, Viviana Montoya, Alejandra Martínez, Marcela Mercado, Alberto De la Ossa, Carolina Vélez, Gloria Estrada, Jorge E Pérez, Alvaro A Faccini-Martínez, Marcelo B Labruna, Gustavo Valbuena |
Journal | Vector borne and zoonotic diseases (Larchmont, N.Y.)
(Vector Borne Zoonotic Dis)
Vol. 13
Issue 5
Pg. 289-94
(May 2013)
ISSN: 1557-7759 [Electronic] United States |
PMID | 23473218
(Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)
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Topics |
- Adolescent
- Adult
- Aged
- Animals
- Colombia
(epidemiology)
- Female
- Humans
- Insect Vectors
(microbiology)
- Male
- Middle Aged
- Prospective Studies
- Rickettsia Infections
(epidemiology, microbiology)
- Rickettsia felis
(genetics, isolation & purification)
- Rickettsia typhi
(genetics, isolation & purification)
- Risk Factors
- Seroepidemiologic Studies
- Siphonaptera
(microbiology)
- Typhus, Endemic Flea-Borne
(epidemiology, microbiology)
- Young Adult
- Zoonoses
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