Volume 19, Number 3—March 2013
Synopsis
Human Leptospirosis Trends, the Netherlands, 1925–2008
, Kimberly R. Boer, Tamara A.T.E. Duarte, Suzanne J. Kliffen, and Rudy A. Hartskeerl
Table 1
Characteristics for case-patients with leptospirosis, the Netherlands, 1925–2008*
| Characteristic | Total cases, n = 2,553 | Autochthonous cases, n = 2,231† | Imported cases, n = 318† | p value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Male sex‡ |
2,306 (91.1) |
2,025 (91.6) |
278 (87.4) |
0.014 |
| Mean (SD) age, y‡ |
33.8 (17.1) |
34.0 (17.5) |
32.6 (14.4) |
0.848 |
| Type of contact | ||||
| Recreational activity | 1,250 (49.0) | 990 (44.4) | 257 (80.8) | <0.001 |
| Job-related | 685 (26.8) | 664 (29.8) | 21 (6.6) | <0.001 |
| Accident | 367 (14.4) | 345 (15.5) | 22 (6.9) | <0.001 |
| Unknown |
250 (9.8) |
232 (10.4) |
18 (5.7) |
|
| Likely route of infection | ||||
| Water | 1,457 (57.1) | 1,219 (54.6) | 236 (74.2) | <0.001 |
| Water and animals | 500 (19.6) | 446 (20.0) | 53 (16.7) | 0.162 |
| Animals | 351 (13.7) | 346 (15.5) | 4 (1.3) | <0.001 |
| Other§ | 16 (0.6) | 14 (0.6) | 2 (0.6) | 1.000 |
| Unknown |
229 (9.0) |
206 (9.2) |
23 (7.2) |
|
| Host exposure¶ | (n = 851) | (n = 792) | (n = 57) | |
| Rats | 443 (52.1) | 411 (51.9) | 32 (56.1) | <0.535 |
| Mice | 123 (14.6) | 120 (15.2) | 3 (5.3) | 0.004 |
| Other rodents | 31 (3.6) | 28 (3.5) | 3 (5.3) | 0.789 |
| Cows | 231 (27.1) | 224 (28.3) | 6 (10.5) | <0.001 |
| Dogs | 172 (20.2) | 158 (19.9) | 13 (22.8) | 0.603 |
| Other animals |
185 (21.7) |
168 (21.2) |
16 (28.1) |
0.088 |
| Serogroup | ||||
| Icterohaemorrhagiae | 1,702 (66.7) | 1,588 (71.2) | 111 (34.9) | <0.001 |
| Grippotyphosa | 196 (7.7) | 174 (7.8) | 22 (6.9) | 0.595 |
| Sejroe | 128 (5.0) | 116 (5.2) | 12 (3.8) | 0.771 |
| Canicola | 93 (3.6) | 87 (3.9) | 6 (1.9) | 0.230 |
| Pomona | 54 (2.1) | 45 (2.0) | 9 (2.8) | 0.107 |
| Autumnalis | 16 (0.6) | 1 (0.1) | 15 (4.7) | <0.001 |
| Bataviae | 11 (0.4) | 0 | 11 (3.5) | <0.001 |
| Other# | 54 (2.1) | 12 (0.5) | 42 (13.2) | <0.001 |
| Unknown |
299 (11.7) |
208 (9.3) |
90 (28.3) |
<0.001 |
| Cultures performed | 1,335 (52.3) | 1,151 (51.6) | 182 (57.2) | 0.060 |
| Positive result | 306 (22.9) | 256 (22.2) | 49 (26.9) | 0.162 |
*Values are no. (%) unless otherwise indicated.
†Data for autochthonous and imported cases could not be obtained for 4 patients.
‡Sex was recorded for 2,532 patients: 2,210 patients with autochthonous cases and 318 patients with imported cases. Age was recorded 2,427 patients; 2,105 patients with autochthonous cases and 381 patients with imported cases.
§Laboratory accidents or contact with mud/soil.
¶Animal specified is not mutually exclusive; 1 patient could have been in contact with >1 animal.
#For total infections, Australis (n = 12), Celledoni (n = 7), Sejroe/Hebdomadis/Mini complex (n = 7), Javanica (n = 6), Pyrogenes (n = 6), Hebdomadis (n = 4), Shermani (n = 4), Ballum (n = 2), Cynopteri (n = 2), Tarassovi (n = 2), Celledoni/Javanica complex (n = 1), Mini (n = 1). For autochthonous infections, Australis (n = 6), Ballum (n = 2), Tarassovi (n = 2), Javanica (n = 1), Sejroe/Hebdomadis/Mini complex (n = 1). For imported infections, Celledoni (n = 7), Australis (n = 6), Pyrogenes (n = 6), Sejroe/Hebdomadis/Mini complex (n = 6), Javanica (n = 5), Hebdomadis (n = 4), Shermani (n = 4), Cynopteri (n = 2), Celledoni/Javanica complex (n = 1), Mini (n = 1).