A study of viral and rickettsial exposure and causes of fever in Juba, southern Sudan.

Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1989. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

A study of viral and rickettsial exposure and causes of fever in Juba, southern Sudan.

Trans R Soc Trop Med Hyg. 1988;82(5):761-6. Unique Identifier : AIDSLINE MED/89299081
Woodruff PW; Morrill JC; Burans JP; Hyams KC; Woody JN; US Naval Medical Research Unit No. 3, Cairo, Egypt.

Abstract: Patients presenting at the Juba Teaching Hospital, either with fever of undetermined origin or with a clinical cause of fever, gave evidence of exposure to a wide range of viral and rickettsial agents. Serological tests showed high antibody levels to flaviviruses (56.9%) and alphaviruses (29.2%), with lesser levels of bunyamweraviruses (3.8%), Rift Valley fever (2.3%), and sandfly fever (0.75%). Flavivirus exposure was significantly associated with clinical evidence of liver disease; repeated exposure to flaviviruses was particularly prevalent in those with poor sanitation and who had received previous injections. A significant focus of Ebola and Marburg exposure in Juba has been identified. Clinical evidence of liver disease was evident in 37% of patients studied, and 24.6% were HBsAg positive. The first 2 HIV-positive individuals from the southern Sudan are reported, including one with clinical AIDS. A high prevalence of positive antibodies to Rickettsia typhi in the population indicated that murine typhus was common locally. This study indicates the need for further public health measures in the southern Sudan to control the spread of these infections.

Keywords: Adolescence Adult Alphavirus/IMMUNOLOGY Antibodies, Viral/ANALYSIS Bunyamwera Group Viruses/IMMUNOLOGY Bunyaviridae Infections/COMPLICATIONS/IMMUNOLOGY Child Child, Preschool Delta Agent/IMMUNOLOGY Female Fever/*ETIOLOGY Flavivirus/IMMUNOLOGY Hepatitis Antibodies/ANALYSIS Hepatitis B Surface Antigens/ANALYSIS Human HIV Seropositivity/COMPLICATIONS Infant Infant, Newborn Male Middle Age Rickettsia Infections/*COMPLICATIONS Sudan Togaviridae Infections/COMPLICATIONS/IMMUNOLOGY Virus Diseases/*COMPLICATIONS JOURNAL ARTICLE

891030
M89A0592

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