First Identification and Description of Rickettsioses and Q Fever as Causes of Acute Febrile Illness in Nicaragua.

Background: Rickettsial infections and Q fever present similarly to other acute febrile illnesses, but are infrequently diagnosed because of limited diagnostic tools. Despite sporadic reports, rickettsial infections and Q fever have not been prospectively studied in Central America.

Methodology/principal Findings: We enrolled consecutive patients presenting with undifferentiated fever in western Nicaragua and collected epidemiologic and clinical data and acute and convalescent sera.

Use of Peptide-Based Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay followed by Immunofluorescence Assay To Document Ehrlichia chaffeensis as a Cause of Febrile Illness in Nicaragua.

Ehrlichia chaffeensis, the etiologic agent of human monocytic ehrlichiosis (HME), has been extensively studied as a cause of acute febrile illness and an emerging tick-borne zoonosis in the United States. Limited data suggest its presence in other regions, including Central and South America but not Nicaragua to date. Diagnosis of E.

Unsuspected leptospirosis is a cause of acute febrile illness in Nicaragua.

Background: Epidemic severe leptospirosis was recognized in Nicaragua in 1995, but unrecognized epidemic and endemic disease remains unstudied.

Methodology/principal Findings: To determine the burden of and risk factors associated with symptomatic leptospirosis in Nicaragua, we prospectively studied patients presenting with fever at a large teaching hospital. Epidemiologic and clinical features were systematically recorded, and paired sera tested by IgM-ELISA to identify patients with probable and possible acute leptospirosis.

Prevalence of HIV and syphilis in pregnant women in Leon, Nicaragua.

The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence of HIV and syphilis and to identify risk factors among pregnant women visiting antenatal clinics in León, Nicaragua. During February to April 2004, blood samples from pregnant women were collected after written consent had been obtained. The samples were tested for antibodies against HIV and Treponema pallidum.