Legionella Pneumophila Seropositivity-Associated Factors in Latvian Blood Donors
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 2016
Olga Valciņa, Daina Pūle, Irina Lucenko, Dita Krastiņa, Žanete Šteingolde, Angelika Krūmiņa, Aivars Bērziņš

Continuous environmental exposure of humans to Legionella may induce immune responses and generation of antibodies. The aim of this study was to investigate the seroprevalence of Legionella pneumophila serogroups (SG) 1–6 in the general healthy population and identify the associated host-related and environmental risk factors. L. pneumophila SG 1–6 seroprevalence among a total of 2007 blood samples collected from healthy donors was 4.8%. Seroprevalence was higher in women (5.9%) than men (3.3%) and in areas with a larger number of inhabitants, ranging from 3.5% in rural regions to 6.8% in the capital, Riga. Blood samples from inhabitants of apartment buildings tested positive for L. pneumophila in more cases (5.8%) compared to those from inhabitants of single-family homes (2.7%). Residents of buildings with a municipal hot water supply system were more likely to be seropositive for L. pneumophila (OR = 3.16, 95% CI 1.26–7.91). Previous episodes of fever were additionally identified as a risk factor (OR = 2.42, 95% CI 1.43–4.1). In conclusion, centralized hot water supply, female gender and previous episodes of fever were determined as the main factors associated with L. pneumophila seropositivity in our study population.


Keywords
blood donors, Legionella pneumophila, seroprevalence
DOI
10.3390/ijerph13010058
Hyperlink
http://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/13/1/58

Valciņa, O., Pūle, D., Lucenko, I., Krastiņa, D., Šteingolde, Ž., Krūmiņa, A., Bērziņš, A. Legionella Pneumophila Seropositivity-Associated Factors in Latvian Blood Donors. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2016, Vol.13, Iss.1, Article number 58. ISSN 1660-4601. Available from: doi:10.3390/ijerph13010058

Publication language
English (en)
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