Infectious Diseases Division, Hospital General de Agudos Dr. Juan A. Fernández, Avenida Cerviño 3365, MO C1425AGP, City of Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Animal Welfare Department, Ecoparque de la Ciudad de Buenos Aires, República de la India 3000, MO C12425FGC, City of Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Ecohealth. 2024 Mar;21(1):38-45. doi: 10.1007/s10393-024-01683-w. Epub 2024 Apr 18.
Different syndromes are involved in human psittacosis (flu-like syndrome, atypical pneumonia up to lacrimal gland lymphoma). Diagnostic methods include serology, culture, and PCR. The rate of Chlamydia psittaci (Cp) positive tests among exposed workers is still unknown. Our study aimed to assess the rate of positive tests among workers who have contact with carrier birds in natural reserves from Buenos Aires, Argentina. Secondary aims were to analyze risk factors linked to these outcomes and the occurrence of signs that suggest psittacosis. Nasopharyngeal swabs and serum pairs were collected from employees who had interacted with confirmed carrier birds. Those with detectable DNA of Cp and/or anti-Chlamydia spp. antibody baseline titer ≥ 160 mUI/ml, or at least quadruplicating, were considered positive. Activities performed with or near birds, personal protective equipment use, and previous chronic conditions were assessed. Possible Cp-related pathologies were evaluated during follow-up. A total of 63 exposed workers (71.4% men) with a median age of 35.7 years (IQR 26-39) were evaluated to detect 28.6% positives. Respiratory chronic conditions were the unique factor associated with positive tests (OR 5.2 [1.5-18.5] p < .05). Surprisingly, about a third of the workers resulted positive and all responded to medical treatment, none developing an acute atypical pneumonia syndrome associated with classical presentation of psittacosis. Active testing for early diagnosis and proper treatment in zoological workers exposed to carrier or potentially carrier birds is strongly suggested as part of zoonotic diseases preventive measures.
人感染鹦鹉热（流感样综合征，非典型性肺炎直至泪腺淋巴瘤）涉及不同的综合征。诊断方法包括血清学、培养和 PCR。在接触携带鹦鹉热衣原体（Cp）的鸟类的暴露工人中，Cp 阳性检测率仍不清楚。我们的研究旨在评估阿根廷布宜诺斯艾利斯自然保护区中接触携带鸟类的工人的阳性检测率。次要目标是分析与这些结果相关的风险因素以及出现提示鹦鹉热的迹象。从与确诊携带鸟类有过接触的员工中采集鼻咽拭子和血清对。那些具有可检测的 Cp DNA 和/或抗衣原体 spp. 抗体基线滴度≥160 mUI/ml，或至少四倍增加的，被认为是阳性的。评估了与鸟类接触或在鸟类附近进行的活动、个人防护设备的使用以及以前的慢性疾病。在随访期间评估了可能与 Cp 相关的病理学。共评估了 63 名接触过暴露的工人（71.4%为男性），中位年龄为 35.7 岁（IQR 26-39），以检测 28.6%的阳性率。呼吸道慢性疾病是与阳性检测结果相关的唯一因素（OR 5.2 [1.5-18.5] p <.05）。令人惊讶的是，约三分之一的工人呈阳性，所有工人均对治疗有反应，无一例出现与经典鹦鹉热表现相关的急性非典型性肺炎综合征。强烈建议对接触携带或潜在携带鸟类的动物园工作人员进行主动检测，以进行早期诊断和适当治疗，作为预防人畜共患疾病措施的一部分。
