title: The incidence of severe leptospirosis in Trinidad.
abstract: Between February 1977 and September 1982, sera from febrile patients from all areas of Trinidad were examined for leptospiral agglutinins; 158 of 1714 patients (9%) were confirmed as current cases of leptospirosis (annual average 26 or 2.6 per 100,000 population). Of the remaining 1556 patients only 711 provided paired sera; 167 of these (23%) showed evidence of previous leptospiral infection. Of the 845 single samples, 125 were positive. The true incidence of the disease is probably much higher than reported here. Males comprised 74% of the current cases; their highest rate of infection was in the 30-39 year age group, the incidence in late teenage approaching this rate. For females, incidence increased with age up to late middle-age. The presumptive infecting serogroups most commonly recorded among the 158 current cases were Icterohaemorrhagiae (37%), Canicola (16%) and Autumnalis (11%). 13 of the cases died (case fatality rate, 8.2%).
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000372:Agglutination Tests; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000032:analysis; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007921:Leptospira interrogans / Q000276:immunology; D041341:Leptospira interrogans serovar canicola / Q000276:immunology; D007922:Leptospirosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012737:Sex Factors; D014300:Trinidad and Tobago; D014895:Weil Disease / Q000453:epidemiology*
chemical_list: D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial