Comparison between emerging Q fever in French Guiana and endemic Q fever in Marseille, France

Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2014 May;90(5):915-9. doi: 10.4269/ajtmh.13-0164. Epub 2014 Mar 17.

Abstract

Q fever is an emergent disease in French Guiana. We compared the incidence clinical and serologic profiles between patients from Cayenne, French Guiana and Marseille in metropolitan France during a four-year period. The annual incidence of diagnosed acute Q fever was significantly higher in Cayenne (17.5/100,000) than in Marseille (1.9/100,000) (P = 0.0004), but not the annual incidence of endocarditis (1.29 versus 0.34/100,000). Most patients had fever (97%) and pneumonia (83%) in Cayenne versus 81% and 8% in Marseille (P < 0.0001 and P < 0.0001, respectively) but transaminitis was more common in patients from Marseille (54% versus 32%; P < 0.0001). The proportion of patients with cardiovascular infections was significantly lower in Cayenne (7%) than in Marseille (17%) (P = 0.017), although they showed a stronger immune response with higher levels of phase I IgG (P = 0.024). The differing epidemiology, clinical, and serologic responses of patients from Cayenne and Marseille suggest a different source of infection and a different strain of Coxiella burnetii.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study

MeSH terms

  • Acute Disease
  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Cardiovascular Diseases / microbiology
  • Communicable Diseases, Emerging*
  • Coxiella burnetii
  • DNA, Bacterial / isolation & purification
  • Endemic Diseases*
  • Female
  • France / epidemiology
  • French Guiana / epidemiology
  • Humans
  • Immunoglobulin G / blood
  • Incidence
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Prevalence
  • Q Fever / diagnosis*
  • Q Fever / epidemiology*
  • Q Fever / immunology
  • Q Fever / transmission
  • Retrospective Studies
  • Risk Factors
  • Young Adult

Substances

  • DNA, Bacterial
  • Immunoglobulin G