Coxiella burnetii causes an acute Q fever, and influenza-like disease which is characterized by pneumonia, fever, headache, myalgia, nausea, etc. Immunoglobulins produced during acute Q fever are mainly directed against the Ⅱantigen of te
organism, In
order to determine the prevalence of C. burnetii infection among residents in Korea, a total of 535 serum samples from patients with fever of unknown origin, patients suspected having tuberculosis, and healthy controls were examined by and
indirect
fluorescent antibody(IFA) test. When IFA titer of 1 : 20 or above was considered seropositive, 23(12.4%) of 186 patients with fever of unknown origin and 25(25(12.5%) of 200 patients suspected with tuberculosis were seropositive, respectively.
Among
healthy cntrols, 11(11.0%) of 100 residents from the Seoul city area and 3(6.1%) of 49 residents in the Taegu city area had elevated antibodies to the C. burnetii phase Ⅱ antigen. IFA titers ranged from 1 : 20 to 1 : 160, but majority of the
seropositive samples sshowed IFA titers of 1 : 20 or 1 : 40, indicating a low degree of exposure to the organism. Sera from patients with Rickettsia tsutsugamushi infection gave little reactivity to the phase Ⅱantigen of C. burnetii, indicating
little
cross-reactivity between the two organisms. This study thus suggests that C. burnetii infection occurs in Korea more widely than expected from the previous studies. Further seroepidemiological studies with an influenza-like disease and persons
contacting infected animals are desirable to undertand the extent of C. burnetii infection.
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