{Reference Type}: Journal Article
{Title}: Serological evidence of louse-borne relapsing fever in northern Kenya.
{Author}: Reyer F;Olesiuk M;Röttgerding F;Fingerle V;Adamu A;Waithiru D;Njeru J;Kraiczy P;
{Journal}: Travel Med Infect Dis
{Volume}: 59
{Issue}: 0
{Year}: 2024 May-Jun 13
{Factor}: 20.441
{DOI}: 10.1016/j.tmaid.2024.102714
{Abstract}: <B>BACKGROUND: </B>Tick- and louse-borne relapsing fever are highly-neglected, vector-borne diseases caused by diverse Borrelia species. Presently, there are no data available on the endemicity of tick- and louse-borne relapsing fever spirochetes in Kenya. Here, we present data of a retrospective study on the seroprevalence of louse-borne relapsing fever (LBRF) in northern Kenya.<BR><B>METHODS: </B>A novel immunoassay, recently established for the diagnosis of LBRF was utilized to screen 2005 blood samples collected from individuals with fever without a source in Turkana County, Kenya between May 2009 and November 2010 for anti-LBRF antibodies.<BR><B>RESULTS: </B>Out of the 2005 sera analyzed, 287 samples (14.3 %) were considered anti-LBRF IgG positive. Subsequent analyses revealed that 87 out of 152 sera randomly selected from these 2005 samples were tested positive (57.2 %) for anti-LBRF IgM antibodies. Most of the IgG and IgM positive samples were from individuals living in northern regions of Turkana County.<BR><B>CONCLUSIONS: </B>Our serological finding provides strong evidence for the occurrence of LBRF in Kenya.