Leptospirosis: Skin Wounds and Control Strategies, Thailand, 1999

摘要

After an outbreak of leptospirosis in workers who participated in cleaning a pond during September 1999 inThailand, a serologic survey was conducted. Among a cohort of 104 persons from one village who partici-pated in pond cleaning activity, 43 (41.3%) were seropositive for immunoglobulin M antibodies againstLeptospira, indicating recent infection. Only 17 (39.5%) of 43 seropositive persons reported a recentfebrile illness; the remaining seropositive persons were considered asymptomatic, suggesting that asymp-tomatic leptospirosis infection may be common where leptospirosis is endemic. Multivariable logisticregression indicated that wearing long pants or skirts was independently protective against leptospirosisinfection (ORadjusted = 0.217), while the presence of more than two wounds on the body was indepen-dently associated with infection (ORadjusted = 3.97). Educational efforts should be enhanced in areaswhere leptospirosis is endemic to encourage the use of protective clothing. In addition, wound manage-ment and avoidance of potentially contaminated water when skin wounds are present should be includedin health education programs