title: Flea-borne rickettsioses in the north of Caldas province, Colombia.
abstract: Rickettsia typhi and R. felis are the etiological agents of murine typhus and flea-borne spotted fever, respectively. Both are emerging acute febrile zoonotic diseases for which fleas are vectors; they also have similar clinical characteristics and global distribution. In 2005, we identified the circulation of murine typhus in 6 towns within the mountainous coffee-growing area north of Caldas, Colombia. We now report the specific seroprevalence against R. typhi and R. felis, and associated risk factors in 7 towns of this province. The combined seroprevalence against the 2 flea-borne rickettsioses is the highest yet reported in the literature: 71.7% (17.8% for R. felis, 25.2% for R. typhi, and 28.7% for both). We also report a prospective analysis of 26 patients with a febrile illness compatible with rickettsioses, including murine typhus; 9 of these patients had a rickettsiosis. This supports our sero-epidemiological results and highlights the diagnostic complexity of febrile syndromes in this region.
authors.affiliation: Infectious Diseases Group, Department of Microbiology, Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, Bogotá, Colombia. hidalgo.m@javeriana.edu.co
authors.forename: Marylin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hidalgo
authors.forename: Viviana
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Montoya
authors.forename: Alejandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Martínez
authors.forename: Marcela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mercado
authors.forename: Alberto
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: De la Ossa
authors.forename: Carolina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Vélez
authors.forename: Gloria
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Estrada
authors.forename: Jorge E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Pérez
authors.forename: Alvaro A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Faccini-Martínez
authors.forename: Marcelo B
authors.initials: MB
authors.lastname: Labruna
authors.forename: Gustavo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Valbuena
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000818:Animals; D003105:Colombia / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007303:Insect Vectors / Q000382:microbiology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012282:Rickettsia Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D041161:Rickettsia felis / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D012286:Rickettsia typhi / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D012307:Risk Factors; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D005423:Siphonaptera / Q000382:microbiology*; D014437:Typhus, Endemic Flea-Borne / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D055815:Young Adult; D015047:Zoonoses