Sero-prevalence of dengue infections in the Kassala state in the eastern part of the Sudan in 2011

Abstract

Dengue fever is a vector-borne disease that is transmitted to humans by infected Aedes aegypti mosquitoes. The eastern part of the Sudan is one of the regions that is affected by dengue virus circulation. In this study, we estimated the prevalence of dengue infections in the Kassala state in the eastern part of the Sudan. The study objective was to estimate the sero-prevalence of dengue IgG/IgM antibodies in the Kassala locality in 2011. This was a cross sectional community-based study that utilized a multi-stage cluster sampling technique regarding the probability sampling the study participants. Capture ELISA serological techniques were used for both IgM and IgG, with the specific cut-offs for each set by the manufacturer. The prevalence of dengue infection was found to be 9.4% (95% CI: 7.1-12.3). In conclusion, there is evidence that the dengue virus is being transmitted in Kassala. Disease surveillance, including the clinical, serological and entomological components, should be strengthened, and additional epidemiological studies are needed to better understand of the disease burden and effects in the area.

Recent transmission of dengue virus and associated risk Facors among residents of Kassala state, eastern Sudan

“…However, only two studies were conducted to evaluate recent transmission of DENV in the locality of Kassala and not the whole State. A previous seroepidemiological survey for DENV IgM, using Panbio (DF IgG and IgM) ELISA kits, reported a very low prevalence of 0.6% among residents of Kassala locality [16]. However, the underestimated prevalence of DENV IgM was attributed to the limitation of the ELISA assay to accurately detect IgM in sera from the study participants.…”

“…In a previous report the prevalence of DEMV-IgM seropositivity, during disease outbreak in Kassala State, was reported to be as high as 71.7% among patient admitted to Kassala hospital [14]. The second report showed a very low prevalence of (0.6%) as the study involved participants during dry season of the year where vector transmission is very rare [16]. The two seroepidemiological surveys were conducted in the locality of Kassala.…”

“…In the recent years, DENV has spread all over the Sudan resulting in frequent occurrence of sporadic cases and multiple outbreaks [10][11][12][13]. The major economic losses caused by DENV infections in Sudan are almost exclusively confind to the Kassala state, eastern Sudan [10,11,[14][15][16]. DENV activity usually varies from frequent sporadic cases to large explosive outbreaks.…”

High seroprevalence of dengue virus indicates that dengue virus infections are frequent in central and eastern Sudan

“…The seroprevalence data were also higher than what was previously reported from Sudan. Previous studies from Port Sudan, Kassala, West Kordofan and the Northern Province found DENV IgG in 9-49% of the tested sera [12,13,15,16,28] (reviewed in [3]. Together the seroprevalence data indicate that further seroepidemiologic testing and surveillance are needed in Sudan.…”

Systematic Review of Important Viral Diseases in Africa in Light of the ‘One Health’ Concept

“…Another study reported the seroprevalence of dengue virus in 489 participants in Kassala in the year 2011. A total of 46/489 (9.4%) samples were positive for the dengue virus IgG and IgM using the ELISA assay [228]. In October 2012, the suspected cases of viral hemorrhagic fever were screened for YFV disease.…”