Abstract:

Background and Objective: Leptospirosis is an acute febrile illness caused by the pathogenic spirochetes of the genus leptospira of which there are more than 230 known serovars. The disease is a zoonosis with a worldwide distribution. In tropical areas the disease is common with a wide range of case manifestations from clinically in apparent to multisystemic cases. Despite leptospirosis being common, it has never been considered in the cases of fever of unknown origin. The study aimed at determining the prevalence and associated factors of Laptospira species antibodies among febrile patients in Mwanza, Tanzania.

Methodology: The cross-sectional laboratory-based study involving 296 achieved sera from febrile patients collected in different hospitals and health centers in Mwanza region was conducted at the pest management center at Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA), Morogoro from May to June 2019. Detection of Leptospiral serovars was done using microscopic agglutination test (MAT). Version 13 as per study objectives.

Results: The median age of the febrile patients was 32, IQR: 24-45 years. Out of 296 sera 36(12.61%, 95%CI: 8-15) were seropositive for Laptospira antibodies. The common circulating serovars were Sokoine 28(9.45%) followed by Lora 12(4.05%) and Grippotyphosa 2(0.67%). On multivariable logistic regression analysis, increase in age (OR: 1.03, 95%CI 1.00-1.07 p-value=0.03) independently predicted Leptospira spp. seropositivity among febrile patients in Mwanza.

Conclusion and Recommendations: About one tenth of febrile patients in Mwanza are Leptospiral seropositive and is significantly associated with advanced age. With declining trend of malaria fever in endemic areas others causes of febrile illness like Leptospiral spp. should be considered in routine diagnosis of fever.