Seroprevalence of leptospiral antibodies among market workers and food handlers in the central state of Malaysia

Samsudin, Suhailah; Sakinah, Siti; Osman, Malina; Norliza, B. A.; Noh, Mohamed Asyraf; Fairuz, A; Jamaluddin, Tengku Zetty Maztura Tengku; Hamat, Rukman Awang; Zahiruddin, Wan Mohd; Nazri, Shahrizal; Sukeri, Surianti; Aziah, B. D.; Idris, Zawaha; Zainudin, Abdul-Wahab; Munirah, N. A.; Desa, Mohd Nasir Mohd; Neela, Vasanthakumari; Masri, Siti Norbaya

doi:10.1111/tmi.13033

Cited by 15 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 21 publications

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“…Several sero-epidemiological studies have documented the possible association of leptospirosis with certain high risk occupations such as town service workers, soldiers, farmers, food-handlers and people who were involved in recreational activities [ 20 , 30 , 32 , 33 , 34 ]. However, studies to explore the knowledge, attitudes and preventive practices are still lacking.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Low Levels of Knowledge, Attitudes and Preventive Practices on Leptospirosis among a Rural Community in Hulu Langat District, Selangor, Malaysia

Nozmi

Samsudin

Sukeri

et al. 2018

IJERPH

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Little is known on the knowledge, attitudes and preventive practices (KAP) of leptospirosis worldwide. This study embarked on assessing the KAP of leptospirosis among rural communities in Malaysia. A total of 444 participants (223 male; 221 female) aged between 18 and 81 years old were surveyed by using a self-administered questionnaire. A majority of participants had poor knowledge level (57.0%), unacceptable attitudes (90.3%) and unacceptable preventive practices (69.1%) on leptospirosis, and only 29.7% knew “rat-urine disease” as leptospirosis. Only 34.2% of the participants knew the bacteria could enter via wound lesions. Ethnicity and income were strongly associated with knowledge level and preventive practices, respectively (p-values < 0.05). As for attitudes, ethnicity, income and education type were significantly associated (p-values < 0.05). Only 36.5% of the participants were willing to see a doctor and did not mind if their house or surrounding area is dirty (59.7%). Surprisingly, only 32.9% had used rubber boots during floods. By logistic regression analysis, ethnicity was the only significant predictor for both knowledge level (an odds ratio (AOR) = 0.39, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.222–0.680) and preventive practices (AOR = 1.81, 95% CI = 1.204–2.734). Ethnicity (AOR = 0.40, 95% CI = 0.239–0.665), income (AOR = 1.58, 95% CI = 1.041–2.385) and education type (AOR = 3.69, 95% CI = 1.237–10.986) were strong predictors for attitudes. Among the KAP variables, attitude (AOR = 4.357, 95% CI = 2.613–7.264) was the only predictor for the preventive practices by logistic regression analysis. The KAP elements on leptospirosis are still lacking and poor health seeking behavior and attitudes are of our utmost concern. Thus, effective strategies should be planned to impart knowledge, and develop proactive approaches and good preventive modules on leptospirosis to this leptospirosis-prone community.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Low Levels of Knowledge, Attitudes and Preventive Practices on Leptospirosis among a Rural Community in Hulu Langat District, Selangor, Malaysia

Nozmi

Samsudin

Sukeri

et al. 2018

IJERPH

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“…Humid conditions and abundant food supply are suitable for rodents’ infestation, which is the main reservoir for human leptospirosis. Previous studies have documented the risk of exposure at market areas [ 11 , 12 , 13 ]. An effective tool is needed to increase awareness and improve preventive behaviours among wet market workers.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Leptospirosis Health Intervention Module Effect on Knowledge, Attitude, Belief, and Practice among Wet Market Workers in Northeastern Malaysia: An Intervention Study

Rahman

Hairon

Hamat

et al. 2018

IJERPH

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Leptospirosis is an infectious disease which can be prevented by increasing awareness and promoting preventive health behaviours among high risk groups including wet market workers. Thus, the aim of this study was to determine the effectiveness of Leptospirosis Health Intervention Program (LHIP) in improving knowledge, attitude, belief and practice towards leptospirosis among wet market workers in Kelantan. This intervention study was conducted in two main wet markets in Kelantan involving 116 participants in each control and intervention groups. The health education intervention was based on Leptospirosis Health Intervention Module. The knowledge, attitude, belief and practice scores were measured before and six weeks after the intervention to examine the effect of the program. The results showed that knowledge (p < 0.001), attitude (p = 0.001), belief (p < 0.001) and practice (p < 0.001) scores changes were significantly higher in the intervention group compared to the control group. The adjusted mean differences were 12.93 (95% CI: 8.47, 17.39) for knowledge, 5.55 (95% CI: 2.28, 8.81) for attitude, 7.21 (95% CI: 3.43, 10.99) for belief and 7.35 (95% CI: 3.64, 11.05) for practice scores. Leptospirosis Health Intervention Program was an effective health educational tools to improve awareness and preventive behaviours among risk groups such as wet market workers.

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“…Positive Leptospira IgM ELISA samples were then tested by MAT, with titers of ³ 1:100 used to classify past exposure to leptospirosis. 20,21,[39][40][41] TaqMan Array Card and single-plex PCR assays were performed on 601 blood samples where sufficient plasma volumes were able to be extracted. The TAC assay targeted all pathogenic serovars of the Leptospira genus, whereas the single-plex PCR used real-time methodology to target the rss gene [42][43][44][45] ( Figure 1).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…is measured instead of overt disease. 20,21 Given the high specificity of MAT, estimates of exposure are likely to be very accurate.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…21,[32][33][34][35][36][37] Alarmingly, a single study evaluated the ELISA diagnostic accuracy for measuring such exposure in Southeast Asia, using MAT as a reference test and reporting 24.3% sensitivity and 93.5% specificity. 20 In this Malaysian study, samples were exclusively taken from a particular subpopulation of market workers and food handlers, whereas children were excluded from the evaluation. Whether IgM ELISA could be an accurate screening tool for recent exposure to pathogenic Leptospira in the general population attending primary care is unknown.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Evaluation of the Panbio Leptospira IgM ELISA among Outpatients Attending Primary Care in Southeast Asia

Dhawan

Althaus

Lubell

et al. 2021

The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene

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Despite estimates suggesting Leptospira spp. being endemic in Southeast Asia, evidence remains limited. Diagnostic accuracy evaluations based on Leptospira ELISA mainly rely on hospitalized and severe patients; therefore, studies measuring the pathogen burden may be inaccurate in the community. We evaluated the Panbio Leptospira ELISA IgM among 656 febrile outpatients attending primary care in Chiangrai, Thailand, and Hlaing Tha Yar, Yangon, Myanmar. ELISA demonstrated limited diagnostic accuracy for the detection of acute leptospiral infection using the manufacturer recommended cutoff, with a sensitivity of 71.4% and specificity of 36.4%, and an area under the receiver operator characteristic curve value of 0.65 (95% CI: 0.41–0.89), compared with our reference test, the PCR assay. ELISA also performed poorly as a screening tool for detecting recent exposure to Leptospira spp. compared with the “gold-standard” microscopic agglutination test, with a specificity of 42.7%. We conclude that the utility of the Leptospira IgM ELISA for both serodiagnosis and seroprevalence is limited in our setting.

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Seroprevalence of leptospiral antibodies among market workers and food handlers in the central state of Malaysia

Abstract: Overall seroprevalence among healthy food handlers and market workers was high in this study. The workplace places susceptible individuals at risk of leptospirosis.

Cited by 15 publications

References 21 publications

Low Levels of Knowledge, Attitudes and Preventive Practices on Leptospirosis among a Rural Community in Hulu Langat District, Selangor, Malaysia

Low Levels of Knowledge, Attitudes and Preventive Practices on Leptospirosis among a Rural Community in Hulu Langat District, Selangor, Malaysia

Leptospirosis Health Intervention Module Effect on Knowledge, Attitude, Belief, and Practice among Wet Market Workers in Northeastern Malaysia: An Intervention Study

Evaluation of the Panbio Leptospira IgM ELISA among Outpatients Attending Primary Care in Southeast Asia

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