Characteristics of louse-borne relapsing fever in Ethiopian children and adults.
Louse-borne relapsing fever (LBRF) is endemic in Ethiopia. The epidemiological and clinical aspects of LBRF and the differences between the infection in children and that in adults were investigated in a rural hospital in Ethiopia. During the 5-year study (1997-2002), 197 patients had a confirmed diagnosis of LBRF. Most (62.1%) of the cases were children under 15 years of age. The adult cases (i.e. those aged > or =15 years) were far more likely to present with headache (76.9% v. 40%; P <0.001), musculo-skeletal pains (61.5% v. 30.5%; P <0.001), dizziness (64% v. 39%; P =0.002) and bleeding (16.9% v. 3.8%; P =0.005) than the paediatric. The overall level of case fatality was 6.4%. Death appeared to be significantly associated with adulthood (P =0.01), delay in consultation (P =0.026) and the presence of vomiting (P =0.023). LBRF is clearly still a public-health problem in Ethiopia, where the clinical manifestations of the disease differ according to the age of the case.
Ramos
J M
JM
Unit of Infectious Diseases (Internal Medicine Service), Hospital General Universitario de Elche, Camíde l'Almazara, 11, 03203 Elche, Alicante, Spain. jramosrincon@yahoo.es
Malmierca
E
E
Reyes
F
F
Wolde
W
W
Galata
A
A
Tesfamariam
A
A
Gorgolas
M
M
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D019353:Endemic Diseases; D005002:Ethiopia / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006470:Hemorrhage / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008288:Malaria / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D012061:Relapsing Fever / Q000150:complications / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000401:mortality; D012189:Retrospective Studies
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents