Leptospirosis is a neglected zoonotic disease. In 2015, leptospirosis was diagnosed in 2 prison inmates in South Africa. Using real-time PCR and DNA sequencing, we identified Leptospira interrogans serogroup Icterohaemorrhagiae in rodents and water samples within the prison. Leptospirosis might be frequently underdiagnosed in South Africa.
Keywords: Leptospira; Rattus norvegicus; South Africa; Zoonoses; bacteria; invasive hosts; leptospirosis; molecular epidemiology; outbreak; prison; public health; rats.