title: Characteristics of louse-borne relapsing fever in Ethiopian children and adults.
abstract: 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.
authors.affiliation: Unit of Infectious Diseases (Internal Medicine Service), Hospital General Universitario de Elche, Camíde l'Almazara, 11, 03203 Elche, Alicante, Spain. jramosrincon@yahoo.es
authors.forename: J M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Ramos
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Malmierca
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Reyes
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Wolde
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Galata
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tesfamariam
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gorgolas
mesh_terms: 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
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents