title: Seroepidemiological study of outdoor recreationists' exposure to spotted fever group Rickettsia in Western Australia.
abstract: Bushland activity has previously been linked to rickettsial exposure in eastern and central regions of Australia, whereas little is known about the risks in Western Australia. The isolation of Rickettsia gravesii sp. nov. from Amblyomma triguttatum ticks and anecdotal reports of low-grade illness among bush recreationists raised the possibility of rickettsial transmission in the State. This study investigated rickettsial seroprevalence and potential risk of exposure to the spotted fever group rickettsiae in rogainers. Our results showed that rogainers active in the bush had a significantly higher risk of seropositivity (immunofluorescence total antibody titer ≥ 128) for the spotted fever group Rickettsia (odds ratio [OR] = 14.02, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.38-142.07) compared with a reference population, the overall seroprevalence in the rogainer group being 23.1%.
authors.affiliation: Australian Rickettsial Reference Laboratory, Geelong, Victoria, Australia; School of Population Health, University of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia, Australia; Fremantle Hospital, Fremantle, Western Australia, Australia; School of Veterinary and Biomedical Science, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia, Australia yazid.abdad@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Mohammad Y
authors.initials: MY
authors.lastname: Abdad
authors.affiliation: Australian Rickettsial Reference Laboratory, Geelong, Victoria, Australia; School of Population Health, University of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia, Australia; Fremantle Hospital, Fremantle, Western Australia, Australia; School of Veterinary and Biomedical Science, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: Angus
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cook
authors.affiliation: Australian Rickettsial Reference Laboratory, Geelong, Victoria, Australia; School of Population Health, University of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia, Australia; Fremantle Hospital, Fremantle, Western Australia, Australia; School of Veterinary and Biomedical Science, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Dyer
authors.affiliation: Australian Rickettsial Reference Laboratory, Geelong, Victoria, Australia; School of Population Health, University of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia, Australia; Fremantle Hospital, Fremantle, Western Australia, Australia; School of Veterinary and Biomedical Science, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Stenos
authors.affiliation: Australian Rickettsial Reference Laboratory, Geelong, Victoria, Australia; School of Population Health, University of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia, Australia; Fremantle Hospital, Fremantle, Western Australia, Australia; School of Veterinary and Biomedical Science, Murdoch University, Murdoch, Western Australia, Australia.
authors.forename: Stanley G
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Fenwick
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000818:Animals; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000097:blood*; D016001:Confidence Intervals; D005260:Female; D005455:Fluorescent Antibody Technique; D006801:Humans; D026863:Ixodidae / Q000382:microbiology*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012281:Rickettsia / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D012282:Rickettsia Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D012306:Risk; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013984:Tick Infestations / Q000150:complications*; D014904:Western Australia / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial