title: Dengue and chikungunya seroprevalence in Gabonese infants prior to major outbreaks in 2007 and 2010: A sero-epidemiological study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Apart from outbreak reports, little is known about the endemicity of dengue and chikungunya virus in African countries. We investigated serum samples collected in Gabon before major outbreaks in 2007 and 2010 in order to identify pre-outbreak-circulation of both viruses.
  
  
  METHODS
  Serum samples from Gabonese infants (162) were analyzed at 3, 9, 15 and 30 months of age by commercial ELISA for dengue and chikungunya IgG-antibodies. If samples were positive medical records of participants were analyzed for symptoms concordant with dengue and chikungunya infections during the time period of assumed seroconversion.
  
  
  RESULTS
  IgG-antibodies against dengue were found in 12.3%, and IgG-antibodies against chikungunya in 0.6% of infants tested. Using the four measuring time points, we estimated corresponding incidences of 51/1.000 person-years and 2.5/1.000 person-years, respectively. Symptoms in positive-tested infants were mostly non-specific.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Seropositivity suggests that both viruses circulated before the well-noticed outbreaks. Clinical diagnosis of dengue and chikungunya is difficult especially in infants, underscoring the need for accurate and reliable diagnostic tests as well as awareness of medical personnel.
  
  
  BACKGROUND
  NCT00167843.
authors: Medical Research Center (CERMEL), Lambaréné, Gabon; Institute for Tropical Medicine, University of Tübingen, Germany. Electronic address: julian.gabor@gmx.de.
authors: Julian Justin
authors: JJ
authors: Gabor
authors: Medical Research Center (CERMEL), Lambaréné, Gabon; Bernhard Nocht Institute for Tropical Medicine, Hamburg, Germany. Electronic address: schwarznorbert@bni-hamburg.de.
authors: Norbert Georg
authors: NG
authors: Schwarz
authors: Medical Research Center (CERMEL), Lambaréné, Gabon; Institute for Tropical Medicine, University of Tübingen, Germany. Electronic address: meral.esen@uni-tuebingen.de.
authors: Meral
authors: M
authors: Esen
authors: Medical Research Center (CERMEL), Lambaréné, Gabon; Institute for Tropical Medicine, University of Tübingen, Germany. Electronic address: peter.kremsner@uni-tuebingen.de.
authors: Peter Gottfried
authors: PG
authors: Kremsner
authors: Medical Research Center (CERMEL), Lambaréné, Gabon; Institute for Tropical Medicine, University of Tübingen, Germany; Center for Tropical Medicine and Travel Medicine, Department of Infectious Diseases, Division of Internal Medicine, Academic Medical Center, University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Electronic address: m.p.grobusch@amc.uva.nl.
authors: Martin Peter
authors: MP
authors: Grobusch
mesh_terms: D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000097:blood; D065632:Chikungunya Fever / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000208:ethnology / Q000276:immunology* / Q000821:virology; D002646:Chikungunya virus / Q000276:immunology; D003715:Dengue / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000208:ethnology / Q000276:immunology* / Q000821:virology; D003716:Dengue Virus / Q000276:immunology; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D005681:Gabon / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D007074:Immunoglobulin G / Q000097:blood*; D015994:Incidence; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D000069078:Seroconversion; D016036:Seroepidemiologic Studies
chemical_list: D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D007074:Immunoglobulin G
keywords: Chikungunya; Dengue; ELISA; Infants; Seroprevalence