Abstract
The majority of dengue virus infections are asymptomatic, which could potentially facilitate the transmission of dengue fever and increase the percentage of sever dengue fever manifestations. This cross-sectional study explored the sero-prevalence of dengue virus infection in Guangzhou to clarify the infection spectrum. In total, 2085 serum samples were collected from residents of 34 communities. All samples were selected from a 200,000-sample database holding serum collected from community residents living in Liwan and Yuexiu districts of Guangzhou between September 2013 and August 2015, and 17 to 28 individuals of each age group were chosen per month. Dengue immunoglobulin G (IgG) and immunoglobulin M (IgM) antibodies were tested by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Symptomatic infected individuals were identified via follow-up questionnaires. Among 2085 serum samples, anti-dengue IgG and IgM positive rates were 11.80% and 3.98%, respectively. The IgG antibody positive rate increased with age and was higher in poorly educated people than in highly educated people and in married individuals than in single individuals. Approximately 96.71% of dengue virus infections and an estimated 13.68% of the whole population were asymptomatic. Such high asymptomatic-infection rates have an impact on the local spread of dengue fever. Stricter surveillance, such as a network of rapid diagnostic laboratories, screening of residents in the epidemic season, and other integrated control measures are necessary.
Highlights
It is estimated that 2.5 billion people worldwide are at risk of dengue fever infection, and at least 100 countries have suffered from dengue fever outbreaks [1,2]
There was no statistical significance of an immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibody positive rate between male and female (p = 0.212), as well as immunoglobulin M (IgM) antibody positive rate between gender, age group, marital status or educational status
The dengue IgG antibody rate was 11.80% in Guangzhou, which was lower than in the Dominican Republic, in which it was reported that 98% of blood donors and 56% of children were positive for dengue IgG [16,17], and lower than in Singapore and Pakistan, where the dengue IgG
Summary
It is estimated that 2.5 billion people worldwide are at risk of dengue fever infection, and at least 100 countries have suffered from dengue fever outbreaks [1,2]. Dengue virus infection usually occurs with no clinical or mild manifestations, referred to as asymptomatic infection [3]. Several studies reported that a high percentage of dengue fever infections were asymptomatic in both endemic and non-endemic areas [4,5]. Among the estimated 390 million dengue fever cases, only 96 million cases show clinical manifestations and the rest of the 294 million cases are asymptomatic infections [6,7]. Asymptomatic dengue infection is usually not detected by surveillance programs.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Free) 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
