G588(P) Scrub typhus: a series of cases in a tertiary care centre from april 2018 to july 2019

Abstract

Background Sub-Saharan African countries overwhelmingly bear the burden of global HIV infection and measles outbreaks in children. Despite the significant impact of this double burden in Nigeria, the effect of HIV infection on measles antibody levels among children is unknown. This study was therefore conducted to compare the measles antibody levels among HIV infected and uninfected children. Methods The study was a descriptive comparative cross-sectional study among 180 HIV infected and uninfected children aged 2-10 year, recruited between August and December 2015 in a Tertiary Healthcare centre in Nigeria. Socio-demographic, clinical and anthropometric parameters were obtained. Blood samples were collected for haematologic evaluation (CD4+ cell count, full blood count) and serologic assay of measles antibody using IMMUNOLAB ELISA kit. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 20. Results A total of 90 HIV infected subjects and 90 age and sex-matched HIV-negative controls were analyzed. There were 48 males and 42 females aged between 2 to 10 years with a Male: Female ratio of 1.1:1 in both groups. The mean age was 5.4 years. While the seroprevalence of measles antibody was 46.7% among the HIV negative children, only 9% of the HIV infected subjects had positive antibody level. The antibody titre was also significantly lower among HIV infected subjects compared with controls with median measles antibody values of 3.3U/ml and 9.4U/ml respectively (p <0.001). HIV infected subjects with more than one dose of measles vaccine had significantly higher seroprevalence of measles antibody than those with single dose (38.5% vs 5.2%, p <0.003). Conclusion There was a low seroprevalence of measles antibody among vaccinated HIV infected children in Nigeria, with higher seroprevalence of measles antibody among children with more than one (1) dose of measles vaccine. It is therefore advocated that HIV infected children should be given additional dose(s) of measles vaccination.