Q Fever in Cyprus: Report of Cases and a Survey of United Nations Personnel

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Abstract
Following the occurrenco of clinical cases of acute Q fever in Cyprus, a survey of United Nations personnel stationed in the island was carried out. These comprised of batches of men from the United Kingdom, Eire, Canada, Denmark, Sweden, Finland with a small number of Austrians and Australians. They came in relays of exactly six months, and paired serum samples were taken from in all 1, 495 men just after arrival, and just before departure. Complement fixation tests using phase 2 antigen were conducted on these and there were 8 (0.53 per cent) conversions. In view of the supposed freedom of Scandinavian countries from Q fever, it is interesting that 0.63 per cent of Danes and 2.1 per cent of Swedes gave positive tests on arrival, though it is not possible to draw any firm conclusions from this. Five hundred and forty-seven random single samples of serum from Cypriots supplied by the Nicosia General Hospital laboratory were also tested and 5.3 per cent were found to be positive. The samples were collected over a period of several months, but may have coincided with an outbreak of infection, and the possibility of a sampling error cannot be denied. However, when one bears in mind the gradual decline of titre with time, the figures would seem to indicate a very high infection rate in the local population. Efforts were made to test serum samples obtained from sheep, goats, pigs and cattle, but these proved to be technically difficult, and only a few were positive. No conclusions could be drawn concerning any geographical distribution of infection within the island as such positive results as were obtained came from widely scattered areas. The Cypriot serum samples were mainly from the Nicosia area and the animal sera were all from the Limassol area.

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