Professional paper
Leptospirosis: indications of changes in clinical presentation in Croatia
M. Balen Topić
A. Beus
Abstract
Leptospirosis has again became an interesting disease around the World because of changes in epidemiological pattern of disease – with appearance of epidemics among urban population, military personnel, athlets, people who participate in recreational activities and international route travellers, and because of changes in clinical patterns of the disease, with severe pulmonary haemorrhage as clinical manifestation of leptospirosis with highest mortality becoming more frequent. According to official data from the Department for Infectious Diseases Epidemiology, Croatian National Institute of Public Health, 1251 (range 12–154 per year) persons with leptospirosis were recorded in Croatia in the period 1990–2004, 18 of whom died. In the observed period, the disease appeared mostly sporadic. Altogether 410 (range: 12–52 per year) patients with leptospirosis were treated in our Clinic, seven of whom died. An increased number of patients is recorded every 2–5 years. Changes in the epidemiological pattern of the disease in the Republic of Croatia are currently not observed, but there are some data which suggest that despite of intensive care medicine developments, the disease shows a tendency of higher mortality.
Keywords
leptospirosis; Republic of Croatia; epidemiology; clinical presentation
Hrčak ID:
17899
URI
Publication date:
8.12.2005.
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