Popis: |
Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV) is an emerging high priority pathogen that threatens livestock and human health. In order to define the range of human transmission during interepidemic and epidemic periods in Kenya, archived sera (N = 1263) were tested for anti-RVFV IgG by ELISA and plaque reduction neutralization testing. RVFV seroprevalence was 10.8% overall and varied significantly by location, gender and age. Because most RVF outbreaks occur in remote locations following floods, environmental risk factors and human sequelae are not fully known. During an interepidemic period in 2006 a randomized household survey (N=248) was performed to examine age- and location-specific RVFV seroprevalence rates, and their association with health status and animal/non-animal exposures. Overall RVFV seroprevalence was 13% and interepidemic RVFV transmission was documented. Seropositivity increased with older age, rural village, male sex, and abortus disposal. The extent of epidemic and interepidemic RVFV transmission is greater than previously documented. |