Volume 12, Number 2—February 2006
Research
Rickettsial Infections and Fever, Vientiane, Laos
Simaly Phongmany*, Jean-Marc Rolain†, Rattanaphone Phetsouvanh*, Stuart D. Blacksell*‡§, Vimone Soukkhaseum*, Bouachanh Rasachack*, Khamphong Phiasakha*, Surn Soukkhaseum*, Khamthavi Frichithavong*, Vang Chu*, Valy Keolouangkhot*¶, Bertrand Martinez-Aussel*#, Ko Chang*, Chirapha Darasavath*, Oudayvone Rattanavong*, Siho Sisouphone*, Mayfong Mayxay*#, Sisouphane Vidamaly*¶, Philippe Parola†, Chanpheng Thammavong*, Mayboun Heuangvongsy*, Bounkong Syhavong*, Didier Raoult†, Nicholas J. White*‡§, and Paul N. Newton*‡
Table 1
Admission clinical features of 104 Lao adults with serologic evidence of acute murine and scrub typhus*
| Variable | Murine typhus (n = 41)† | Scrub typhus (n = 63)† | p value | Reference range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age, (y)‡ | 40 (17–70) | 31 (16–73) | 0.5 | |
| No. (%) male | 26 (63) | 40 (63) | 0.6 | |
| No. days ill‡ | 11 (3–30) | 10 (2–42) | 0.2 | |
| Headache (%) | 38 (95) (n = 40) | 60 (95) | 1.0 | |
| Abdominal pain (%) | 17 (43) (n = 40) | 22 (35) | 0.5 | |
| Nausea (%) | 18 (45) (n = 40) | 39 (62) | 0.09 | |
| Vomiting (%) | 11 (28) (n = 40) | 25 (40) | 0.3 | |
| Diarrhea (%) | 7 (18) (n = 40) | 22 (35) | 0.07 | |
| Cough (%) | 14 (35) (n = 40) | 24 (38) | 0.8 | |
| Sputum (%) | 8 (20) (n = 40) | 13 (21) | 1.0 | |
| Dyspnea (%) | 5 (13) (n = 40) | 7 (11) | 1.0 | |
| Chest pain (%) | 3 (8) (n = 40) | 13 (21) | 0.1 | |
| Back pain (%) | 15 (38) (n = 40) | 19 (30) | 0.5 | |
| Dysuria (%) | 3 (8) (n = 40) | 2 (3) | 0.4 | |
| Arthralgia (%) | 10 (25) (n = 40) | 13 (21) (n = 62) | 0.6 | |
| Myalgia (%) | 34 (85) (n = 40) | 59 (95) (n = 62) | 0.1 | |
| Sore throat (%) | 3 (8) (n = 40) | 12 (19) | 0.2 | |
| Lymphadenopathy (%) | 1 (3) (n = 38) | 27 (46) (n = 59) | <0.001 | |
| Bleeding (%) | 2 (5) (n = 39) | 4 (6) (n = 58) | 1.0 | |
| Convulsions (%) | 0 (n = 40) | 1 (2) (n = 62) | 1.0 | |
| Rash (%) | 5 (13) (n = 38) | 16 (27) (n = 59) | 0.1 | |
| Abnormal chest exam (%) | 1 (3) (n = 38) | 16 (27) (n = 59) | 0.002 | |
| Abdominal tenderness (%) | 1 (3) (n = 39) | 6 (10) (n = 59) | 0.2 | |
| Liver palpable (%) | 27 (73) (n = 37) | 30 (52) (n = 58) | 0.05 | |
| Spleen palpable (%) | 6 (15) (n = 39) | 9 (15) (n = 59) | 1.0 | |
| Temperature (°C)‡ | 38.5 (38.2–38.8) (n = 36) | 38.6 (38.4–38.9) (n = 56) | 0.3 | |
| Pulse/min§ | 91.1 (87.1–95.1) (n = 36) | 95.7 (91.8–99.6) (n = 54) | 0.09 | |
| Systolic blood pressure (mm Hg)‡ | 100 (80–130) (n = 36) | 100 (90–150) (n = 54) | 0.6 | |
| Diastolic blood pressure (mm Hg)‡ | 70 (50–80) (n = 36) | 65 (50–110) (n = 54) | 0.8 | |
| Respiratory rate/min§ | 20.7 (19.9–21.6) (n = 36) | 22.9 (22.0–23.8) (n = 58) | 0.0012 | |
| Glasgow Coma Score‡ | 15 (15) (n = 38) | 15 (7–15) (n = 59) | 0.3 | |
| Meningism (%) | 2 (5) (n = 39) | 7 (12) (n = 59) | 0.3 | |
| Hematocrit (%)‡ | 40 (13–48) (n = 35) | 40 (23–50) (n = 53) | 0.7 | |
| Leukocyte count (×109/L)‡ | 10.4 (3.1–38) (n = 37) | 11.8 (0.7–26.3) (n = 54) | 0.1 | 4.0–11.0 |
| Neutrophils (%)‡ | 68 (26-86) (n = 37) | 70 (0–93) (n = 54) | 0.2 | |
| Platelets (×109/L)§ | 190 (23–350) (n = 37) | 200 (192–208) (n = 49) | 0.4 | 150–400 |
| Serum creatinine (μmol/L)‡ | 106 (70–466) (n = 32) | 106 (70–783) (n = 53) | 0.7 | 53–123 |
| Serum AST (IU/L)‡ | 87 (32–789) (n = 31) | 86 (16–437) (n = 52) | 0.6 | 7–35 |
| Serum ALT (IU/L)‡ | 39 (20–234) (n = 31) | 48 (12–180) (n = 52) | 0.7 | 7–35 |
| Serum albumin (g/L)‡ | 38 (26–50) (n = 32) | 35 (22–49) (n = 53) | 0.2 | 35–50 |
| Serum creatinine kinase (IU/L)¶ | 113 (80–159) (n = 32) | 121 (70–210) (n = 53) | 0.8 | 24–190 |
| Serum alkaline phosphatase (IU/L)‡ | 156 (47–532) (n = 32) | 175 (55–745) (n = 53) | 0.5 | 120–290 |
| Serum direct bilirubin (μmol/L)‡ | 8.3 (1.7–60.4) (n = 32) | 8.3 (2.6–83.0) (n = 52) | 0.9 | 0.5–8.8 |
| Serum total bilirubin (μmol/L)‡ | 17.9 (7.7–109) (n = 32) | 18.4 (7.7–131) (n = 52) | 0.4 | 1.7–20 |
| No. patients serum total bilirubin >50 μmol/L (%) | 2 (6) (n = 32) | 4 (8) (n = 52) | 1.0 | |
| No. patients serum AST >105 IU/L (%) | 11 (36) (n = 31) | 18 (35) (n = 52) | 1.0 | |
| No. patients serum ALT >105 IU/L (%) | 6 (19) (n = 31) | 5 (10) (n = 52) | 0.3 | |
| Deaths (%) | 0 | 1 (1.5) |
*AST, aspartate aminotransferase; ALT, alanine aminotransferase; CI, confidence interval.
†The available sample size is given in parentheses where the entire sample was not available for a given variable.
‡Median (range).
§Mean (95% CI).
¶Geometric mean (95% CI).
