|
Acute Q fever and scrub typhus, Southern
Taiwan.
|
|
|
|
|
| Article Type: | Report |
| Subject: |
Q fever
(Causes of) Q fever (Research) Disease transmission (Research) Scrub typhus (Causes of) Scrub typhus (Research) |
| Authors: |
Lai, Chung-Hsu Chen, Yen-Hsu Lin, Jiun-Nong Chang, Lin-Li Chen, Wei-Fang Lin, Hsi-Hsun |
| Pub Date: | 10/01/2009 |
| Publication: | Name: Emerging Infectious Diseases Publisher: U.S. National Center for Infectious Diseases Audience: Academic; Professional Format: Magazine/Journal Subject: Health Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2009 U.S. National Center for Infectious Diseases ISSN: 1080-6040 |
| Issue: | Date: Oct, 2009 Source Volume: 15 Source Issue: 10 |
| Topic: | Event Code: 310 Science & research |
| Geographic: | Geographic Scope: Taiwan Geographic Code: 9TAIW Taiwan |
|
|
|
| Accession Number: | 216040695 |
| Full Text: |
Q fever is a worldwide zoonosis in humans caused by Coxiella
burnetii infection. Ticks are the main arthropod vectors of C. burnetii;
the major animal reservoirs include goats, sheep, cattle, and domestic
cats. Humans are infected mainly by inhaling organism-contaminated
aerosols (1). Scrub typhus, caused by Orientia tsutsugamushi infection,
is endemic to eastern Asia and the western Pacific region. O.
tsutsugamushi is transmitted vertically in mites (particularly
Leptotrombidium species) by the transovarial route, and horizontally in
rodents through trombiculid larval (chigger) bites. Humans contract
scrub typhus by being bitten by chiggers infected with O. tsutsugamushi;
such bites occur accidentally during agriculture or field recreational
activities (2). Although the major arthropod vectors, animal reservoirs, and routes of transmission to humans are different for C. burnetii and O. tsutsugamushi, co-infection may occur when humans have been exposed to an environment where arthropod vectors and animal reservoirs are prevalent. In southern Taiwan, acute Q fever and scrub typhus are endemic zoonoses (3-5), and co-infection with the 2 pathogens may occur. We report 5 cases of co-infection with the agents of acute Q fever and scrub typhus. The Study This study was conducted at E-Da Hospital, a teaching hospital located in Kaohsiung County in southern Taiwan, and approved by its Institute Ethics Committee (E-MRP096-065) in 2006. Rickettsial diseases are notifiable diseases in Taiwan, and suspected cases with appropriate clinical characteristics are reported to the Center for Disease Control, Taipei, Taiwan for confirmation. Because acute Q fever, scrub typhus, and murine typhus (caused by flea-borne Rickettsia typhi) are the most common rickettsial diseases in Taiwan (3-5), we requested tests for the etiologic agents of the 3 diseases simultaneously in patients who sought treatment, regardless of which disease we suspected on the basis of clinical features. Serologic assessments for specific antibodies to C. burnetii and O. tsutsugamushi were performed by using indirect immunofluorescence antibody assay as previously described (5). Acute Q fever was diagnosed by either an antiphase II antigen immunoglobulin (Ig) G titer [greater than or equal to] 320 and antiphase II antigen IgM titer [greater than or equal to] 80 in a single serum sample, or a [greater than or equal to] 4-fold rise of antiphase II antigen IgG titer in paired serum samples. Antigens of 3 major strains of O. tsutsugamushi (Karp, Kato, and Gilliam strains) were used to diagnose scrub typhus: either an IgM titer [greater than or equal to]80 or a [greater than or equal to] 4-fold rise in IgG titer in paired serum samples for Karp, Kato, and Gilliam strains of O. tsutsugamushi. Murine typhus was diagnosed by an IgM titer [greater than or equal to] 80 or a [greater than or equal to] 4-fold rise in IgG titer against R. typhi in paired sera. Co-infection with C. burnetii and O. tsutsugamushi was diagnosed if the serologic results fulfilled the diagnostic criteria for both infections. From April 15, 2004, through June 30, 2008, we identified 12 cases of murine typhus, 89 cases of acute Q fever, and 43 cases of scrub typhus; 5 persons had both acute Q fever and scrub typhus. All 5 patients with co-infections denied having fever within 3 months before admission. The demographic data and clinical manifestations of the 5 case-patients co-infected with C. burnetii and O. tsutsugamushi are listed in the online Appendix Table (available from www.cdc.gov/EID/content/15/10/1659-appT.htm). Thrombocytopenia and elevated liver enzyme levels improved after antimicrobial drug treatment. Conclusions In this study, we found that 5.3% (5/94) and 10.4% (5/48) patients who fulfilled the serologic diagnosis of acute Q fever and scrub typhus, respectively, were co-infected with C. burnetii and O. tsutsugamushi. Although the major arthropod vectors, animal reservoirs, and route of transmission to humans are different for C. burnetii and O. tsutsugamushi, co-infection with these 2 organisms can occur, particularly in regions where both Q fever and scrub typhus are endemic, such as southern Taiwan. Identification of co-infection improves understanding of the epidemiology of each disease and reminds clinicians to monitor patients for whom the development of chronic Q fever after acute Q fever is a high risk; such follow-up is not needed for the cases of scrub typhus alone. Few cases of concurrent Q fever and other rickettsioses have been reported in the literature (6,7). Rolain et al. found that 6 patients with tick-borne rickettsioses had concomitant or consecutive infection with C. burnetii; antibodies were routinely tested against antigens of C. burnetii, Rickettsia spp., Anaplasma phagocytophylum, Francisella tularensis, and Borrelia burgdorferi (6). Five and 2 of their 6 patients had an eschar and skin rash, respectively, and none had a history or clinical signs suggestive of acute Q fever. In contrast, none of our patients had an eschar, the characteristic manifestation of scrub typhus, and only 1 had a skin rash, which made a presumptive clinical diagnosis of scrub typhus difficult. For scrub typhus, co-infection with Leptospira spp. (8-12) and R. typhi (13) has been reported. Co-infection with O. tsutsugamushi and Leptospira spp. tends to be associated with severe illness and death (8-12), and cases are mainly reported in Southeast Asia, particularly in Thailand (8) and Taiwan (9-12). However, we did not routinely test for leptospirosis in this study. Cases of O. tsutsugamushi and R. typhi co-infection had been found in a surveillance of patients with fever of unknown causes, which were possibly cases of scrub typhus in China (13). No co-infection of O. tsutsugamushi and R. typhi was identified in our study, which might be because relatively fewer cases of murine typhus were identified. The possibility of serologic cross-reaction between Q fever and scrub typhus that results in misdiagnosis of coinfection is low. Cross-reactivity of serologic test results for C. burnetii and Bartonella spp., Legionella pneumophila, L. micdadei, and Ehrlichia chaffeensis have been reported, but there were no data available on cross-reactivity for O. tsutsugamushi (6,14). In conclusion, although major arthropod vectors, animal reservoirs, and routes of transmission to humans are different for C. burnetii and O. tsutsugamushi, co-infection with these 2 organisms may occur, particularly in regions where both Q fever and scrub typhus are endemic. This study was partially supported by a research grant of the E-Da Hospital (EDAH-D-97-P-007A). References (1.) Maurin M, Raoult D. Q fever. Clin Microbiol Rev. 1999;12:518-53. (2.) Jeong YJ, Kim S, Wook YD, Lee JW, Kim KI, Lee SH. Scrub typhus: clinical, pathologic, and imaging findings. Radiographics. 2007;27:161-72. DOI: 10.1148/rg.271065074 (3.) Lai CH, Huang CK, Chin C, Chung HC, Huang WS, Lin CW, et al. Acute Q fever: an emerging and endemic disease in southern Taiwan. Scand J Infect Dis. 2008;40:105-10. DOI: 10.1080/00365540701558722 (4.) Lai CH, Huang CK, Weng HC, Chung HC, Liang SH, Lin JN, et al. Clinical characteristics of acute Q fever, scrub typhus, and murine typhus with delayed defervescence despite doxycycline treatment. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2008;79:441-6. (5.) Lee HC, Ko WC, Lee HL, Chen HY. Clinical manifestations and complications of rickettsiosis in southern Taiwan. J Formos Med Assoc. 2002;101:385-92. (6.) Rolain JM, Gouriet F, Brouqui P, Larrey D, Janbon F, Vene S, et al. Concomitant or consecutive infection with Coxiella burnetii and tickborne diseases. Clin Infect Dis. 2005;40:82-8. DOI: 10.1086/426440 (7.) Janbon F, Raoult D, Reynes J, Bertrand A. Concomitant human infection due to Rickettsia conorii and Coxiella burnetii. J Infect Dis. 1989;160:354-5. (8.) Watt G, Jongsakul K, Suttinont C. Possible scrub typhus coinfections in Thai agricultural workers hospitalized with leptospirosis. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2003;68:89-91. (9.) Chen YS, Cheng SL, Wang HC, Yang PC. Successful treatment of pulmonary hemorrhage associated with leptospirosis and scrub typhus co-infection by early plasma exchange. J Formos Med Assoc. 2007;106:S1-6. DOI: 10.1016/S0929-6646(09)60209-6 (10.) Lu PL, Tseng SH. Fatal septicemic melioidosis in a young military person possibly co-infected with Leptospira interrogans and Orientia tsutsugamushi. Kaohsiung J Med Sci. 2005;21:173-8. DOI: 10.1016/S1607-551X(09)70297-9 (11.) Wang NC, Ni YH, Peng MY, Chang FY. Acute acalculous cholecystitis and pancreatitis in a patient with concomitant leptospirosis and scrub typhus. J Microbiol Immunol Infect. 2003;36:285-7. (12.) Lee CH, Liu JW. Co-infection with leptospirosis and scrub typhus in Taiwanese patients. Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2007;77:525-7. (13.) Zhang LJ, Li XM, Zhang DR, Zhang JS, Di Y, Luan MC, et al. Molecular epidemic survey on co-prevalence of scrub typhus and murine typhus in Yuxi City, Yunnan Province of China. Chin Med J (Engl). 2007;120:1314-8. (14.) Fournier PE, Marrie TJ, Raoult D. Diagnosis of Q fever. J Clin Microbiol. 1998;36:1823-34. Author affiliations: E-Da Hospital and I-Shou University, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan (C.-H. Lai, J-.N. Lin, W.-F. Chen, H.-H. Lin); Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung City (C.-H. Lai, Y-H. Chen, J.-N. Lin, L.-L. Chang); and National Yang-Ming University, Taipei, Taiwan (H.-H. Lin) DOI: 10.3201/eid1510.090007 Address for correspondence: Hsi-Hsun Lin, Division of Infectious Diseases, E-Da Hospital/I-Shou University, 1, E-Da Rd, Jiau-Shu Tsuen, Yan-Chau Shiang, Kaohsiung County, 824 Taiwan, Republic of China; email: ed100233@yahoo.com.tw Dr Lai is an infectious disease specialist at E-Da Hospital in Kaohsiung County, Taiwan. His research interests include rickettsioses, antimicrobial drug resistance, and the epidemiology of nosocomial pathogens. |
| Gale Copyright: | Copyright 2009 Gale, Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. |