TABLE 1.
Demographic, clinical and laboratory characteristics of patients
| Parameter | Unit | Scrub typhus | Murine typhus | p-value (ST vs. MT) | Febrile controls |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Age | Years (range) | 26 (5–75) | 31 (9–82) | 0.13 | 27 (16–65) |
| Days of fevera | Days (IQR) | 8.5 (7–11) | 8 (7–10) | 0.54 | 8 (7–15) |
| ADM-FUPb | Days (IQR) | 6 (4–7) | 6 (4–7) | 0.50 | 3 (3–6) |
| Eschar | No. (%) | 23/54 (43) | 0/55 (0) | 0.0001 | 2/11 (18) |
| Skin rash | No. (%) | 10/54 (19) | 10/54 (19) | 0.93 | 3/11 (27) |
| Lymphadenopathyc | No. (%) | 34/54 (63) | 3/54 (6) | 0.0001 | 0 (0) |
| Haemorrhaged | No. (%) | 22/55 (40) | 5/55 (9) | 0.0002 | 3/8 (38) |
| Hearing loss | No. (%) | 24/30 (80) | 0/15 (0) | 0.07 | 1/8 (13) |
| GCS | Score (IQR) | 15 (15–15) | 15 (15–15) | 0.32 | 15 (15–15) |
| WBC | ×103/mL (IQR) | 9.6 (6.5–12.80) | 8.5 (6.8–10.7) | 0.49 | 7.3 (6.2–7.9) |
| Lymphocytes | % WBC (IQR) | 30 (22–40) | 33 (27–40) | 0.34 | 36 (33–41) |
| Monocytes | % WBC (IQR) | 4.5 (0–9) | 1 (0–4) | 0.62 | 0.5 (0–1) |
| Platelets | 1000/mL (IQR) | 209 (182–225) | 200 (170–210) | 0.11 | 210 (170–250) |
| Sodium | mmol/L (IQR) | 137 (132–143) | 145 (139–151) | 0.0003 | 145 (141–148) |
| Creatinine | μmol/L (IQR) | 88.4 (70.7–114.9) | 106.1 (88.4–123.8) | 0.006 | 106.1 (97.2–132.6) |
| Albumin | g/dL (IQR) | 3.3 (2.7–3.7) | 3.9 (3.3–4.2) | 0.0002 | 4.2 (3.6–4.9) |
| Blood urea nitrogen | mmol/L (IQR) | 3.93 (3.21–5.0) | 3.2 (2.5–5.0) | 0.11 | 3.57 (2.5–3.9) |
| Aspartate transaminase | U/L (IQR) | 84 (52–130) | 75 (44–102) | 0.24 | 64 (22–89) |
| C-reactive protein | U/L (IQR) | 81 (46–131) | 48 (30–113) | 0.05 | 2 (1–64) |
| Lactate dehydrogenase | U/L (IQR) | 514 (389–626) | 429 (324–555) | 0.03 | 389 (274–546) |
ADM-FUP, time between admission and follow-up; GCS, Glasgow Coma Scale; IQR, interquartile range; MT, murine typhus; ST, scrub typhus; WBC, white blood cell count.
Comparisons of demographic, clinical, haematological and biochemical parameters for scrub typhus (n = 55), murine typhus (n = 55) and febrile controls (n = 11). Significant p-values are depicted in bold. Probability values were calculated with the Kruskal–Wallis equality-of-populations rank test.
Represents the number of febrile days before admission.
The admission to follow-up period for cytokine, coagulation and biochemistry parameters (not identical to the period between paired diagnostic samples for serology).
Regional and/or generalized lymphadenopathy.
The criteria for ‘haemorrhage’ were defined as (muco)cutaneous petechial and suffusion bleeding sites.