Abstract
Orientia tsutsugamushi, spotted fever group rickettsioses, and typhus group rickettsioses (TGR) are reemerging causes of acute febrile illness (AFI) in Southeast Asia. To further delineate extent, we enrolled patients >4 weeks of age with nonmalarial AFI in Sabah, Malaysia, during 2013-2015. We confirmed rickettsioses (past or acute, IgG titer >160) in 126/354 (36%) patients. We confirmed acute rickettsioses (paired 4-fold IgG titer rise to >160) in 38/145 (26%) patients: 23 O. tsutsugamushi, 9 spotted fever group, 4 TGR, 1 O. tsutsugamushi/spotted fever group, and 1 O. tsutsugamushi/TGR. PCR results were positive in 11/319 (3%) patients. Confirmed rickettsioses were more common in male adults; agricultural/plantation work and recent forest exposure were risk factors. Dizziness and acute hearing loss but not eschars were reported more often with acute rickettsioses. Only 2 patients were treated with doxycycline. Acute rickettsioses are common (>26%), underrecognized, and untreated etiologies of AFI in East Malaysia; empirical doxycycline treatment should be considered.
Highlights
In support of improving patient care, this activity has been planned and implemented by Medscape, LLC and Emerging Infectious Diseases
Of 557 patients who met eligibility criteria, 426 (77%) consented to enrolment and blood collection; 183 (43%) patients returned for convalescent follow-up (median 13 days; interquartile range (IQR) 12–14 days), and 157 (37%) had acute-phase serum samples, convalescent-phase serum samples, or both collected (Figure 1)
Discussion rickettsial infections were first documented in Malaysia in 1925 [17], few cases are currently confirmed and reported nationally [18]
Summary
In support of improving patient care, this activity has been planned and implemented by Medscape, LLC and Emerging Infectious Diseases. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity. Successful completion of this CME activity, which includes participation in the evaluation component, enables the participant to earn up to 1.0 MOC points in the American Board of Internal Medicine's (ABIM) Maintenance of Certification (MOC) program. Participants will earn MOC points equivalent to the amount of CME credits claimed for the activity. It is the CME activity provider's responsibility to submit participant completion information to ACCME for the purpose of granting ABIM MOC credit. Evaluate the findings of diagnostic testing for rickettsioses among patients with nonmalarial AFI in Sabah, East Malaysia, from 2013 to 2015
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