A seriological investigation of Q fever in clinical patients

Results of a serological survey of 507 patients, 301 males and 206 females at the Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital indicated a total 20.5 per cent, or 21.3 per cent in males and 19.4 per cent females, had been exposed to Q fever agent and had circulating antibody against Coxiella burnetii. Most of the positive sera were from patients whose clinical diagnoses were typhoid and pyrexia of unknown origin though these generally are the commonest clinical diagnoses in the hospital. Titres varied from 1:4 to 1:1028 indicating old infections in some patients and acute in others. The results of normal blood donors also showed a 22 per cent positive. It is suggested that the presumptive evidence of the serological tests results be substantiated by isolation of the agent so that a correlation between clinical signs and evidence of Q fever infection be established.