Seroprevalence of Scrub Typhus among Febrile Patients from a Tertiary Care Hospital in Kerala
Journal Title: National Journal of Laboratory Medicine - Year 2016, Vol 5, Issue 4
Abstract
Introduction: Scrub typhus or bush typhus is a form of typhus caused by the intracellular parasite Orientia tsutsugamushi. As the clinical features include fever, headache, vomiting, respiratory infections and rashes, this disease presents like typhoid, dengue, leptospirosis or malaria. Though Weil Felix test is conventional, cheap and easy to perform, but IgM ELISA is a more sensitive test. There is no published data on this topic from this region. Aim: To determine the seroprevalence of Scrub typhus among febrile patients using Weil-Felix and IgM ELISA tests. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out at the Government Medical College Hospital Thrissur, between the period of July 2015 to March 2016. Total 285 cases with febrile illness were screened for scrub typhus. Commercially available kits of Weil-Felix and IgM ELISA were used. Results: Out of 285 samples 54 (18.95%) were positive by either Weil Felix or Ig M ELISA or both. 21-30 years age groups showed maximum cases during the monsoon and post monsoon period and there was no gender difference. Rise in titer of OX2 and OX 19 was also seen showing the presence of Rickettsial disease other than scrub typhus. Conclusion: Scrub typhus fever should be considered as one of the differential diagnosis of fever of unknown origin in this area.
Authors and Affiliations
Dr. Jasmine Kulappurathu Abdul Kader, Dr. Kavitha Paul Konikkara, Dr. Vimalraj Angattukuzhiyil Narayanan, Dr. Prithi Nair K
Keywords
Related Articles
- EP ID EP381956
- DOI 10.7860/NJLM/2016/21801:2159
- Views 116
- Downloads 0
Expression of Ki67 as a Prognostic Marker in Invasive Breast Carcinoma
Introduction: Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women of developed countries. It accounts for 16% and 22.9% of cancers and invasive cancers, respectively. About 18.2% of deaths related to cancer amongst men and...
Time and Motion Study of Blood Delivery System in a Regional Blood Transfusion Centre in West Bengal: A Pilot Study
Introduction: Delay in turnaround time (TAT) of blood delivery for transfusion is an important administrative problem in hospitals. Time and motion study for a definite root cause analysis (RCA) is valuable to identify t...
Evaluation of Urinary Calcium Creatinine Ratio in Pre-Eclampsia
Introduction: Hypertensive disorder complicates the pregnancy. The exact aetiology of hypertensive disorders of the pregnancy is still unknown and management is controversial. Aim: To evaluate the role of urinary calcium...
A Rare Case of Giant Placental Chorangioma with Adverse Fetal Outcome : A Case Report with Review of Literature
Chorangiomas are a rare benign non-trophoblastic neoplasms of the placenta. Small sized chorangiomas often go undetected with uneventful pregnancy. However large sized chorangiomas, which if undiagnosed antenatally can c...
Resistant Microorganisms Isolated from Cases of Chronic Suppurative Otitis Media: A Therapeutic Concern
Introduction: Chronic Suppurative Otitis Media (CSOM) still is a common health care problem in developing countries like India with its potential for serious local damage and complications. Knowledge of causative microor...