article · International Journal of Infectious Diseases
An epidemiological investigation evaluated exposure to five zoonotic viral haemorrhagic fevers and identified associated risk factors across eight districts within five ecological zones of Tanzania. Testing blood samples from 500 outpatients and community members revealed that 12.8 per cent of individuals possessed antibodies against Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever, Ebola virus disease, Marburg virus disease, Rift Valley fever, or yellow fever. Specifically, seroprevalence was 4.8 per cent for Rift Valley fever, 3.4 per cent for Ebola virus disease, 2.0 per cent for Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever, 1.4 per cent for yellow fever, and 1.2 per cent for Marburg virus disease. Significant risk factors included keeping goats and contacting wild animals for Rift Valley fever, and contacting bats for Marburg virus disease. Because most exposures occurred without apparent clinical signs, these findings emphasise the necessity of strengthening national disease surveillance and febrile illness management.
Viral haemorrhagic fevers represent severe, high-consequence public health threats. By showing that several of these pathogens circulate subclinically within communities and linking them to specific animal interactions, this research provides vital baseline evidence. These insights enable public health authorities to target interventions, design better outbreak prevention strategies, and upgrade clinical surveillance systems to identify and manage hidden febrile infections early.
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OBJECTIVE: To determine the seroprevalence of selected zoonotic viral hemorrhagic fevers (VHFs) and their associated risk factors in Tanzania. METHODS: Blood samples were collected from consenting outpatients and community members in eight districts selected from five ecological zones of Tanzania. Serum was harvested and tested for the presence of immunoglobulin G (IgG) and M (IgM) antibodies against Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF), Ebola virus disease (EVD), Marburg virus disease (MVD), Rift Valley fever (RVF), and yellow fever (YF). RESULTS: The presence of IgM and IgG antibodies against CCHF, EVD, MVD, RVF, and YF was detected in 64 of 500 samples (12.8%). The prevalences of IgM and IgG antibodies to CCHF, EVD, MVD, RFV, and YF were 2.0%, 3.4%, 1.2%, 4.8%, and 1.4%, respectively. Contact with wild animals (OR = 1.2, CI = 1.3-1.6) and keeping goats (OR = 1.3, CI = 1.5-1.9) were significantly associated with RVF, while contact with bats (OR = 1.2, CI = 1.1-1.5) was associated with MVD. CONCLUSION: The findings of this study provide evidence of exposure to CCHF, EVD, MVD, RVF, and YF in Tanzania. Since most of these VHFs occurred without apparent clinical forms of the disease, these findings call for the need to strengthen the surveillance system and management of febrile illnesses in Tanzania.
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DOI: 10.1016/j.ijid.2021.07.006
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