title: Melioidosis in Africa: should we be looking more closely?
abstract: Melioidosis is a life-threatening infection caused by the Gram-negative bacterium Burkholderia pseudomallei, mainly found in Southeast Asia. Recently, African foci have been identified, although reports remain mostly anecdotal. In Africa, multiple febrile diseases have been erroneously attributed to malaria in the past, and many cases of fever remain mis- or undiagnosed. Vigilance for previously under-recognized pathogens may enhance our understanding of disease epidemiology and facilitate improvement of patient care. Melioidosis may be such a condition. We summarize data on melioidosis in Africa and discuss the future directions for epidemiological, clinical and bacteriological studies. We conclude that searching for old bugs in new places is no academic treasure hunt but a clinically relevant activity to pursue.
authors.affiliation: Center of Tropical Medicine & Travel Medicine, Department of Infectious Diseases, Division of Internal Medicine, Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Emma
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Birnie
authors.forename: Willem J
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Wiersinga
authors.forename: Direk
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Limmathurotsakul
authors.forename: Martin P
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Grobusch
mesh_terms: D000349:Africa / Q000453:epidemiology; D000818:Animals; D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial / Q000097:blood; D016957:Burkholderia pseudomallei / Q000276:immunology / Q000302:isolation & purification; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008288:Malaria / Q000175:diagnosis; D008297:Male; D008554:Melioidosis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology / Q000662:veterinary
chemical_list: D000907:Antibodies, Bacterial
keywords: Africa; Burkholderia pseudomallei; animals; gnathostomiasis; human; malaria; melioidosis; soil