Serologic evidences of Rickettsia rickettsii, Rickettsia typhi, Coxiella burnetii, Bartonella quintana, Bartonella henselae and Ehrlichia chaffeensis infections in healthy individuals and febrile aids and non-AIDS patients from the region of Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais

Abstract

SUMMARY OF THESISof the patients) were also found but none of C. burnetii infection. Fifty six rickettsial infections out 439 non-AIDS patients gave rise to a 12.8% occurrence rate, leaded by R. rickettsii and C. burnetii (16 cases -3.6% of the patients each) followed by Bartonella spp. (13 cases -3%), E. chaffeensis (7 cases -1.6%) and R. typhi (4 cases -0.9%). Rickettsial infections were diagnosed in 15.7% of sepsis cases leaded by spotted fever group rickettsioses (13.7%) and in 13.8% of influenza-like cases mostly caused by R. rickettsii and C. burnetii (16 cases -4.6% of the patients each) but also with expressive detection of cases of monocytothropic ehrlichiosis and murine typhus among those with this last syndrome. Taken together the rickettsial infections were the main cause of influenza-like syndromes if depicted from epidemic dengue fever cases and the second cause of sepsis in this study. In the end, rickettsial infections were identified in all studied syndromes. Eleven deaths out 65 rickettsial infections gave rise to a 16.9% lethality rate (16.1% in non-AIDS and 22.2% in AIDS patients). The prevalence of rickettsial infections in a healthy population from the Piau county, Minas Gerais State was also studied. The rates for R. rickettsii, R. typhi, C. burnetii, B. henselae, B. quintana and E. chaffeensis were respectively 1.6%, 1.1%, 3.9%, 13.7%, 12.8% and 10.5%. The seropositivity rate was also analyzed amongst the 726 febrile patients (AIDS plus non-AIDS) and rates of 3.9%, 2.7%, 3.9%, 19.3%, 15.2% and 7.3% were respectively found. Rickettsial infections of different kinds probably have been often occurring in the studied region but have remained uncovered given the very peculiar ways for their proper identification and so representing a serious threat to the local population.

Seropositivity for Coxiella burnetii in suspected patients with dengue in São Paulo state, Brazil

“…Prevalence studies on human Q fever in Brazil were only performed in the southeastern states and Bahia, with prevalence rates ranging from 1.7% to 29% and high rates observed in occupational groups, such as abattoir workers and veterinary students [3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18]. Recent studies in Rio de Janeiro and Minas Gerais, states neighboring São Paulo, showed prevalence rates of 10% and 5.7%, respectively, in the symptomatic population [16,18].…”