Chronic Q fever in the Netherlands 5 years after the start of the Q fever epidemic: results from the Dutch chronic Q fever database

J Clin Microbiol. 2014 May;52(5):1637-43. doi: 10.1128/JCM.03221-13. Epub 2014 Mar 5.

Abstract

Coxiella burnetii causes Q fever, a zoonosis, which has acute and chronic manifestations. From 2007 to 2010, the Netherlands experienced a large Q fever outbreak, which has offered a unique opportunity to analyze chronic Q fever cases. In an observational cohort study, baseline characteristics and clinical characteristics, as well as mortality, of patients with proven, probable, or possible chronic Q fever in the Netherlands, were analyzed. In total, 284 chronic Q fever patients were identified, of which 151 (53.7%) had proven, 64 (22.5%) probable, and 69 (24.3%) possible chronic Q fever. Among proven and probable chronic Q fever patients, vascular infection focus (56.7%) was more prevalent than endocarditis (34.9%). An acute Q fever episode was recalled by 27.0% of the patients. The all-cause mortality rate was 19.1%, while the chronic Q fever-related mortality rate was 13.0%, with mortality rates of 9.3% among endocarditis patients and 18% among patients with a vascular focus of infection. Increasing age (P=0.004 and 0.010), proven chronic Q fever (P=0.020 and 0.002), vascular chronic Q fever (P=0.024 and 0.005), acute presentation with chronic Q fever (P=0.002 and P<0.001), and surgical treatment of chronic Q fever (P=0.025 and P<0.001) were significantly associated with all-cause mortality and chronic Q fever-related mortality, respectively.

MeSH terms

  • Aged
  • Chronic Disease / epidemiology*
  • Cohort Studies
  • Coxiella burnetii / isolation & purification
  • Databases, Factual
  • Disease Outbreaks
  • Endocarditis / epidemiology
  • Endocarditis / microbiology
  • Epidemics
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Netherlands / epidemiology
  • Prevalence
  • Q Fever / epidemiology*
  • Q Fever / microbiology