Prevalence of antibodies to rickettsias and ehrlichias in four border departments of Peru

Abstract

To determine the prevalence of antibodies to Rickettsia and Ehrlichia, related to recent and past contact, in the border towns of the departments Loreto, Madre de Dios, Tumbes and Tacna, during the years 2010 and 2011, surveys for serological evaluation were carried out using the indirect immunofluorescence assay (IIF), in order to detect immunoglobulins G (IgG) and Total immunoglobulins (IgA + IgM + IgG) in 1634 persons. A recent contact prevalence was found for Ehrlichia of 3.7% (CI 95%: 3.0-4.4) and for Rickettsia of 10.6% (CI 95%: 9.1-12.1), and past contact for Ehrlichia of 19.0% (CI 95%: 17.1-21.0) and for Rickettsia of 23.3% (CI 95%: 21.2-25.3). It is concluded that there is a higher prevalence for past contact or infection in the population studied, both for Rickettsia and Ehrlichia, which would indicate an endemic behavior to both infectious agents in the geographic areas mentioned.