title: Clinical and microbiological features of melioidosis in northern Vietnam.
abstract: Sporadic cases of melioidosis have been reported from Vietnam for decades, but clinical and epidemiological data for the indigenous population are still scarce. In this study, we reviewed clinical and demographic data of patients with culture-proven melioidosis diagnosed at a single large referral hospital in Hanoi between November 1997 and December 2005. We found that the clinical manifestations of melioidosis (with fatal septicaemia as the most common presentation), a high rate of underlying diseases, and a peak of cases admitted during the wet season, were similar to studies from other endemic areas. The geographical origin of patients with melioidosis showed that melioidosis existed in at least 18 northern provinces. The characterization of clinical Burkholderia pseudomallei strains by multilocus sequence typing identified 17 different sequence types (STs), 11 of which have (as yet) not been found outside Vietnam. Several of these STs presumably were generated through recent evolutionary events in this rapidly diversifying bacterial species, and thus, restricted geographic distribution may be a consequence of limited time passed since emergence. To our knowledge, this is the first report on a series of cases describing clinical and epidemiological features of melioidosis and corresponding B. pseudomallei strains from northern Vietnam.
authors.affiliation: Department of Microbiology, Bach Mai Hospital, 78 Giai Phong Road, Hanoi, Vietnam.
authors.forename: Doan Mai
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Phuong
authors.forename: Trinh Thanh
authors.initials: TT
authors.lastname: Trung
authors.forename: Katrin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Breitbach
authors.forename: Nguyen Quang
authors.initials: NQ
authors.lastname: Tuan
authors.forename: Ulrich
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Nübel
authors.forename: Gisela
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Flunker
authors.forename: Dinh Duy
authors.initials: DD
authors.lastname: Khang
authors.forename: Nguyen Xuan
authors.initials: NX
authors.lastname: Quang
authors.forename: Ivo
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Steinmetz
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D016957:Burkholderia pseudomallei / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008554:Melioidosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics / Q000382:microbiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D012621:Seasons; D018805:Sepsis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics / Q000382:microbiology*; D013997:Time Factors; D014744:Vietnam / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult