Seroepidemiological study of Lyme borreliosis among forestry workers in southern Poland.
Forestry workers are a professional group particularly exposed to tick-borne infections; however, continuous monitoring of anti-Borrelia burgdorferi antibodies in this group enables faster diagnosis and more effective treatment for borreliosis. A group of 1,155 forestry workers from six forest inspectorates in southern Poland were examined with the immunoenzymatic method (ELISA test). The general level of anti-Borrelia burgdorferi antibodies was 12.8 % in IgM class, and 25 % in IgG class. Markedly more seropositive results were found in the group of fieldworkers (13.8 % - IgM and 25.0 % - IgG) than in office workers (10.0 % - IgM and 13.7 % - IgG). The highest proportions of infections both in IgM and IgG class (17.4 % and 34.8 %, respectively) were recorded in the group of persons over 50 years of age, the lowest - in the group of workers younger than 30 (IgM - 13.0 %, IgG - 14.1%). Significant differences in the level of seropositive results in IgG class were related to the workers' gender - in women the percentage was 9.8 %, in men - 28.1 %. It was found that in the studied region of southern Poland, considered to be non-endemic, borreliosis occurs as a health risk to forestry workers.
Buczek
Alicja
A
Department of Occupational Biohazards, Institute of Agricultural Medicine, Jaczewskiego 2, 20-090 Lublin, Poland. aaem@galen.imw.lublin.pl.
Rudek
Alicja
A
Bartosik
Katarzyna
K
Szymanska
Jolanta
J
Wojcik-Fatla
Angelina
A
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000382:Agricultural Workers' Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology*; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000097:blood; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000097:blood; D007075:Immunoglobulin M / Q000097:blood; D008193:Lyme Disease / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011044:Poland / Q000453:epidemiology; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D014197:Trees
D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial; D007074:Immunoglobulin G; D007075:Immunoglobulin M