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Volume 31, Number 9—September 2025
CME ACTIVITY - Research
Rickettsioses as Underrecognized Cause of Hospitalization for Febrile Illness, Uganda
, Sultanah Alharthi, Andrés F. Londoño, Abdullah Wailagala, Yukari C. Manabe, J. Stephen Dumler, and the Acute Febrile Illness and Sepsis in Uganda Study Teams1
Table 3
Clinical examination and laboratory features among diagnostic classes in a study of rickettsioses as an underrecognized cause of hospitalization for febrile illness, Uganda *
| Characteristic | Total, n = 329 | Malarial, n = 59 | Rickettsial, n = 33 | p value, rickettsial vs. malarial† | Nonmalarial, n = 237 | p value, rickettsial vs. nonmalarial† |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rash on examination, no. (%)‡ | 21/328 (6.4) | 2/59 (3.4) | 2/33 (6.1) | 0.616 | 17/236 (7.2) | >0.999 |
| Leukocytes, × 103 cells/µL§ | 5.5 (3.9–8.4) | 4.7 (3.3–6.6) | 6.2 (4.6–8.1) | 0.012 | 5.6 (4.1–9.4) | 0.900 |
| Platelet count, × 103 cells/µL ¶ | 205.0 (134.7–289.0) | 104.1 (64.2–179.0) | 168.0 (116.9–264.5) | 0.007 | 227.0 (171.0–311.0) | 0.013 |
| AST, U/L ‡# | 35.0 (26.0–59.0) | 32.0 (24.0–42.0) | 38.0 (26.0–92.0) | 0.081 | 36.0 (26.0–61.0) | 0.524 |
| ALT, U/L | 23.0 (18.0–36.0) | 21.0 (17.0–28.0) | 25.0 (19.0–44.0) | 0.119 | 24.0 (18.0–37.0) | 0.596 |
| Creatinine, mg/dL** | 0.8 (0.5–1.0) | 0.8 (0.0–1.0) | 0.8 (0.0–1.1) | 0.204 | 0.8 (0.6–1.0) | 0.541 |
*Values are median (interquartile range) except as indicated. ALT, alanine transaminase; AST, aspartate transaminase; qSOFA, quick sepsis organ failure assessment. †Fisher exact test, Wilcoxon rank-sum test, or Pearson χ2 test. ‡No. positive/no. tested (%). Missing for 1 of 329 participants. §Missing for 18 of 328 participants. ¶Missing for 19 of 328 participants. #Missing for 1 of 329 participants. **Missing for 2 of 322 participants.
1Members are listed at the end of this article.