Jpn. J. Infect. Dis., 59 (1), 31-35, 2006
To see a printable version of the article in the Adobe file format, click this [PDF] link.
Original Article
Epidemiological Studies on Bartonella quintana Infections among Homeless People in Tokyo, Japan
Naomi Seki1,2, Toshinori Sasaki2 , Kyoko Sawabe2, Tsuguo Sasaki3, Mayumi Matsuoka3, Yoshichika Arakawa3, Eiji Marui1 and Mutsuo Kobayashi2*
1Department of Public Health, School of Medicine, Juntendo University, Tokyo 113-8421; 2Department of Medical Entomology, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo 162-8640; and 3Department of Bacterial Pathogenesis and Infection Control, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Tokyo 208-0011, Japan
(Received August 5, 2005. Accepted November 22, 2005)
*Corresponding author: Mailing address: Department of Medical Entomology, National Institute of Infectious Diseases, Toyama 1-23-1, Shinjukuku-ku, Tokyo 162-8640, Japan. Tel: +81-3-5285-1111 ext. 2400, Fax: +81-3-5285-1178, E-mail: mutsuo@nih.go.jp
SUMMARY: In an epidemiological investigation of trench fever in Japan, we compared the seroprevalence of Bartonella quintana in homeless people and in the general population. In homeless rescue outreach programs held in Tokyo from May 2001 to March 2003, 151 blood samples were taken from non-hospitalized homeless people. The prevalence of IgM and IgG antibodies against B. quintana in these people was compared with that in 200 healthy blood donors using a commercially available indirect fluorescent antibody test. Although IgG titers of > or = 1:128 were found in 57% (86/151) of homeless people and 51% (101/200) of blood donors, high titers of > or = to 1:1,024 were encountered only in homeless people (11%, 16/151). Attempts to isolate B. quintana from the blood of homeless people were unsuccessful, but polymerase chain reaction based detection, using Bartonella genus specific primers, demonstrated the presence of B. quintana DNA in the blood of 10 homeless people. Our data suggest that urban trench fever is endemic among the Japanese homeless population.