Citation:Reller, M. E., Bodinayake, C., Nagahawatte, A., Devasiri, V., Kodikara-Arachichi, W., Strouse, J. J., Broadwater, A., Ostbye, T., De Silva, A. & Woods, C. W. (2012). Unsuspected dengue and acute febrile illness in rural and semi-urban southern Sri Lanka. Emerging infectious diseases, 18(2), 256.
Date:2012-02-02
Abstract:
Dengue virus (DENV), a globally emerging cause of
undifferentiated fever, has been documented in the heavily
urbanized western coast of Sri Lanka since the 1960s.
New areas of Sri Lanka are now being affected, and the
reported number and severity of cases have increased.
To study emerging DENV in southern Sri Lanka, we
obtained epidemiologic and clinical data and acute- and
convalescent-phase serum samples from patients >2 years
old with febrile illness. We tested paired serum samples for
DENV IgG and IgM and serotyped virus by using isolation
and reverse transcription PCR. We identified acute DENV
infection (serotypes 2, 3, and 4) in 54 (6.3%) of 859 patients.
Only 14% of patients had clinically suspected dengue;
however, 54% had serologically confirmed acute or past
DENV infection. DENV is a major and largely unrecognized
cause of fever in southern Sri Lanka, especially in young
adults.
