Leptospirosis as a Cause of Fever in Urban Bangladesh

Evidence of a Major Reservoir of Non-Malarial Febrile Diseases in Malaria-Endemic Regions of Bangladesh

“…[3][4][5][6] Comparable proportions of typhoid fever have been reported earlier from urban slums in Bangladesh with the highest rates among children 5 years of age. 7,8 Throughout the last century sporadic cases of dengue fever have been reported from major cities of Bangladesh, but since the year 2000 several dengue outbreaks with up to 6,000 clinical cases and a case-fatality rate around 1.6% occurred.…”

Urban Leptospirosis in Africa: A Cross-Sectional Survey of Leptospira Infection in Rodents in the Kibera Urban Settlement, Nairobi, Kenya

“…Consequently, in many parts of the world, the public health impact of leptospirosis is largely undocumented 5–8. However, when leptospirosis is considered in clinical and epidemiologic evaluations of febrile populations, significant disease burdens are frequently demonstrated 4,9–11. Data from studies of febrile illness in many tropical regions indicate that leptospirosis can account for considerable proportions of febrile illnesses.…”

Epidemiological and clinical importance of leptospirosis: Bangladesh perspective

“…However, socioeconomic conditions (urbanization), population density, global climatic and environmental changes such as floods and heavy rainfall, cyclones, humidity, and water contamination, poor sanitation and inadequate waste disposal and behavioral and occupational habits of humans are amenable to spread of the disease in this country. [8][9] e presence of garbage, waste and sewage encourage the proliferation of rodents and can therefore increase the risk of leptospirosis. Garbage can also block drainage systems and exacerbate flooding risk.…”

“…Many studies around the world have confirmed that close contact with garbage and sewage are significant risk factors in leptospirosis transmission particularly in urban slums which is particularly applicable for Bangladesh. [7][8][9][10] e increased risk of leptospirosis in South East Asian region particularly Bangladesh during the rainy season becomes higher after flooding that accompanies natural disasters when the human population may be exposed to water contaminated with urine from infected animals. It has been shown that people who are engaged in agriculture and animal husbandry have higher risk of leptospirosis in comparison to other occupations.…”