Persistence of Chlamydia Complement-Fixation Antibody after an Outbreak of Psittacosis

Psittacosis is a disease characterized by fever, chills, headache, malaise, myalgias, and atypical pneumonia. About 110 cases are reported annually to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), primarily among pet bird owners and poultry industry workers. Because culture techniques for Chlamydia psittac...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Journal of infectious diseases 1993-02, Vol.167 (2), p.502-503
Main Authors: Hedberg, Katrina, White, Karen E., Hedberg, Craig W., Brandriet, Judith, Osterholm, Michael T., MacDonald, Kristine L.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Antibodies
Antibodies, Bacterial - blood
Antigens
Bird songs
Chlamydia
Chlamydia psittaci
Chlamydophila psittaci - immunology
Cohort Studies
Complement Fixation Tests
Correspondence
Disease Outbreaks
Diseases
Epidemiology
Follow-Up Studies
Food-Processing Industry
Humans
Infections
Occupational Diseases - epidemiology
Occupational Diseases - immunology
Psittacosis
Psittacosis - epidemiology
Psittacosis - immunology
Specimens
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Summary:Psittacosis is a disease characterized by fever, chills, headache, malaise, myalgias, and atypical pneumonia. About 110 cases are reported annually to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), primarily among pet bird owners and poultry industry workers. Because culture techniques for Chlamydia psittaci are not readily available, the diagnosis of psittacosis is generally based on serologic evidence of infection. The most commonly used serologic test is complement fixation (CF), which detects antibody to Chlamydia group antigen. A fourfold increase in CF antibody titer is considered diagnostic of acute infection. Although the epidemiology of psittacosis has been described, the persistence of Chlamydia CF antibody after infection with C. psittaci has not been well characterized. To examine this issue, we monitored Chlamydia CF antibody titers over a 9-month follow-up period in a cohort of Minnesota turkey industry workers who developed psittacosis during an outbreak in 1986.
ISSN:0022-1899
1537-6613
DOI:10.1093/infdis/167.2.502