Seroprevalence of Dengue IgG Antibodies among Healthy Adult Population in Lahore, Pakistan

Abstract

Background. Dengue is a mosquito-borne flavivirus infection prevalent in tropical and subtropical regions around the world. Aim of this study was to determine seroprevalence of anti-dengue IgG antibodies in healthy adult population of Lahore and also describe risk factors in relation to dengue seropositivity.Methods. In this cross-sectional study, 274 healthy adult individuals aged 15 years and above were randomly selected using multistage sampling technique. These individuals were interviewed between July–September 2012, using a semistructured questionnaire, followed by drawing 3 mL of their venous blood for dengue IgG test. Nova Tech ELISA kit with sensitivity and specificity of 96.5% and 97.5%, respectively, was used for serology.Results. Out of 274 participants, 184 (67.2%) were found to be positive for dengue IgG antibodies. Seroprevalence was higher among individuals with poor awareness about potential breeding sites for dengue mosquito (63.6%), followed by the subjects who had poor knowledge about dengue signs/symptoms and complications (52.2% and 68.5%, resp.).Conclusion. About two-third of healthy population of Lahore was also seropositive for anti-dengue IgG during July–September 2012, indicating a considerable burden of subclinical dengue infection in the city. Males were predominantly affected than the females. We found no statistical association between dengue IgG seropositivity and socioeconomic status, occupation, and knowledge about the disease.

Survey of malaria and anti-dengue virus IgG among febrile HIV-infected patients attending a tertiary hospital in Abuja, Nigeria

“…This current study reported a prevalence of 44.4% for dengue-specific IgG antibody among participants, which is in accordance with the findings of Sultana et al,17 who observed 42.9% seroprevalence of anti-dengue IgG in Chittagong, Bangladesh. The seroprevalence from this study is not in conformity with dengue virus-specific IgG seroprevalence of 67.2% by Mahmood et al,18 77% by Adeleke et al,19 79% by Peyerl-Hoffmann et al20 and 98% by Yamashiro et al21 The observed discrepancies in prevalence reports could be due to the level of awareness of dengue, urbanization and environment deterioration 22. The high circulation of dengue virus in the study area could be attributed to several factors including misdiagnosis of febrile cases, the movement of migrants from endemic countries and the proliferation of breeding sites of Aedes mosquitoes 23.…”

“…This observation is in consonance with Bello et al30 and Adeleke et al,19 studies but not with others’ studies18,20,31,32,33 which reported higher prevalence for dengue infection in males than in females. The disparity in the prevalence for gender could be the relatively large number of females recruited for the study compared to fewer males.…”

“…In contrast to these observations on the use of protective measures such as using indoor insecticide sprays in preventing the spread of dengue virus, Mahmood et al18 reported a higher dengue burden in participants who never used indoor anti-mosquito sprays compared to those who frequently used such sprays, and their findings indicated no significant association between anti-dengue seropositivity and frequency in the use of these insecticides. Unlike the previous study that recruited apparently healthy adult participants, our study involved the study of immunocompromised participants.…”

Dengue seroprevalence and its socioeconomic determinants in Faisalabad, Pakistan: a cross-sectional study

“…Similarly, a recent study conducted in Nouméa, New Caledonia, reported the association of higher incidence of dengue rates with lower socioeconomic status 10 . By contrast, various studies conducted in Pakistan found no statistical association between socioeconomic status and dengue seropositivity 11,12 . However, it is significant to mention here that the results of this study cannot be compared with the previous studies, as most studies involve calculation of middle class solely on the basis of accumulative household income, ignoring other factors such as education, wealth, occupation, and lifestyle.…”

Dengue: Moving from Current Standard of Care to State-of-the-Art Treatment

“…The impact of dengue has the potential for severe morbidity in young and healthy individuals, especially in situations of massive outbreaks, as have been happening, for example, in Lahore, Pakistan in 2011, with 500,000 notified cases in a city of 5 million, and a dengue IgG seropositivity rate of 67.9 % the following year in a city not previously endemic for dengue [ 155 ]. Physicians unfamiliar with dengue may at short notice have to deal with critically ill patients either in an outbreak or as a result of travel-related dengue infection [ 156 ].…”