title: Preliminary study of dengue virus infection in Iran.
abstract: Dengue fever is one of the most important arthropod-borne viral diseases of public health significance. It is endemic in most tropical and subtropical parts of the world, many of which are popular tourist destinations. The presence of dengue infection was examined in Iranian patients who were referred to the Arboviruses and Viral Haemorrhagic Fevers Laboratory of the Pasteur Institute of Iran and tested negative for Crimean-Congo Haemorrhagic Fever (CCHF) between 2000 and 2012. Serum samples from these patients were tested for the presence of specific IgG and IgM and viral nucleic acid in blood. Of the 300 sera tested, 15 (5%) were seropositive, and 3 (1%) were both serologically and PCR positive. Of the 15 seropositive cases, 8 (53.3%) had travelled to endemic areas including Malaysia (5, 62.5%), India (2, 25%) and Thailand (1, 12.5%). In contrast, 7 (46.7%) of the cases had not reported travelling abroad. Of these, six cases were from the Sistan and Baluchistan province in southeast Iran and neighbouring Pakistan. Travellers play a key role in the epidemiology of dengue infection in Iran and it is recommended that travellers to endemic areas take precautionary measures to avoid mosquito bites.
authors.affiliation: Arboviruses and Viral Haemorrhagic Fevers Laboratory (National Ref. Lab), Department of Virology, Pasteur Institute of Iran, 60 Pasteur Ave., Tehran, Iran. sadeghchinikar@yahoo.com
authors.forename: Sadegh
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chinikar
authors.forename: Seyed Mojtaba
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Ghiasi
authors.forename: Nariman
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Shah-Hosseini
authors.forename: Ehsan
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Mostafavi
authors.forename: Maryam
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Moradi
authors.forename: Sahar
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Khakifirouz
authors.forename: Fereshteh Sadat
authors.initials: FS
authors.lastname: Rasi Varai
authors.forename: Mahboubeh
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rafigh
authors.forename: Tahmineh
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Jalali
authors.forename: Mohammad Mehdi
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Goya
authors.forename: Mohammad Reza
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Shirzadi
authors.forename: Mohammad
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zainali
authors.forename: Anthony R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Fooks
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000097:blood; D003715:Dengue / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology / Q000635:transmission; D003716:Dengue Virus / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D005260:Female; D006479:Hemorrhagic Fever, Crimean; D006801:Humans; D007492:Iran / Q000453:epidemiology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D062486:Public Health Surveillance; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D057236:Travel Medicine
chemical_list: D000914:Antibodies, Viral