Urban Leptospirosis in Africa: A Cross-Sectional Survey of Leptospira Infection in Rodents in the Kibera Urban Settlement, Nairobi, Kenya

Details

• Alternative Title:
  Am J Trop Med Hyg
• Personal Author:
  Halliday, Jo E. B. ; Knobel, Darryn L. ; Allan, Kathryn J. ; de C. Bronsvoort, B. Mark ; Handel, Ian ; Agwanda, Bernard ; Cutler, Sally J. ; Olack, Beatrice ; Ahmed, Ahmed ; Hartskeerl, Rudy A. ; Njenga, M. Kariuki ; Cleaveland, Sarah ; Breiman, Robert F.
• Description:
  Leptospirosis is a widespread but under-reported cause of morbidity and mortality. Global re-emergence of leptospirosis has been associated with the growth of informal urban settlements in which rodents are thought to be important reservoir hosts. Understanding the multi-host epidemiology of leptospirosis is essential to control and prevent disease. A cross-sectional survey of rodents in the Kibera settlement in Nairobi, Kenya was conducted in September-October 2008 to demonstrate the presence of pathogenic leptospires. A real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction showed that 41 (18.3%) of 224 rodents carried pathogenic leptospires in their kidneys, and sequence data identified Leptospira interrogans and L. kirschneri in this population. Rodents of the genus Mus (37 of 185) were significantly more likely to be positive than those of the genus Rattus (4 of 39; odds ratio = 15.03). Questionnaire data showed frequent contact between humans and rodents in Kibera. This study emphasizes the need to quantify the public health impacts of this neglected disease at this and other urban sites in Africa.
• Subjects:
  Animals Cross-Sectional Studies Disease Reservoirs DNA, Bacterial Female Humans Leptospira Leptospira Interrogans Leptospirosis Male Mice Multivariate Analysis Phylogeny Questionnaires Rats Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction Rodent Diseases Rodentia Urban Health

  More +
• Source:
  Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2013; 89(6):1095-1102.
• Document Type:
  Journal Article
• Funding:
  081828/B/06/Z/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom ; 096400/Z/11/Z/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom ; BB/J010367/1/Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council/United Kingdom ; G0902417/Medical Research Council/United Kingdom ; G0902417 94378/Medical Research Council/United Kingdom ; R01 TW009237/TW/FIC NIH HHS/United States
• Place as Subject:
  Kenya
• Volume:
  89
• Issue:
  6
• Collection(s):
  CDC Public Access
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha256:82dd1e1442e78fb8ee8d0d002c43fca833a60750db2e7ef6b5d34e4f1a9440e5
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/21399/cdc_21399_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 755.27 KB ]