Table 1.
Comparison of clinical and epidemiological data from human ‘Candidatus Rickettsia rioja’, Rickettsia slovaca and Rickettsia raoultii infection.
| Clinical and Epidemiological Data |
‘Ca. R. rioja’ Infection (n:91) |
R. slovaca Infection (n:66) |
R. raoultii Infection (n:4) |
Patients with DEBONEL by Unknown Agent (n:55) | p Value | Total Patients (n:216) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sex (female) | 49/91 (53.85%) | 45/66 (68.18%) | 3/4 (75.00%) | 44/55 (80.00%) ** | 0.008 | 141 |
| Mean age (years) | 32.98 ± 2.42 | 37.62 ± 3.09 | 27.00 ± 12.27 | 39.13 ± 2.80 | 0.325 | 37.7 |
| IP (days) | 5.43 ± 0.31 | 4.68 ± 0.28 | 5.00 ± 0.41 | 5.78 ± 0.40 | 0.161 | 5.61 |
| Low grade fever 1 | 34/91 (37.36%) | 19/66 (28.79%) | 2/4 (50.00%) | 16/55 (29.09%) | 0.505 | 71 (32.87%) |
| Fever 2 | 2/91 (2.20%) | 3/66 (4.55%) | 0/4 (0.00%) | 3/55 (5.45%) | 0.653 | 8 (3.70%) |
| Persistent alopecia 3 | 26/89 (29.21%) | 40/64 (62.50%) *** | 1/3 (33.33%) | 9/47 (19.15%) ### | <0.001 | 76/203 (37.44%) |
| Evidence of recent infection by IFA (seroconversion or fourfold rise in titer) | 39/48 (81.25%) | 28/34 (82.35%) | 1/1 (100.00%) | 23/26 (88.46%) | 0.798 | 91/109 (83.49%) |
Qualitative variables are represented in percentage while quantitative variables are represented as mean ± standard error mean. The p value refers to the comparison between four groups. Asterisks indicate statistically significant differences with respect to ‘Ca. R. rioja’ group, while hashtags indicate statistically significant differences with respect to R. slovaca (** p < 0.01 vs. ‘Ca. R. rioja’, *** p < 0.001 vs. ‘Ca. R. rioja’ and ### p < 0.001 vs. R. slovaca). ‘Ca. R. Rioja’: ‘Candidatus Rickettsia rioja’; n: number; R.: Rickettsia; DEBONEL: Dermacentor- borne-necrosis-erythema-lymphadenopathy; IP: Incubation period; 1 Low grade fever: <38 °C; 2 Fever > 38 °C; 3 Persistent alopecia: The patient developed persistent alopecia at the site of the tick-bite (0.5–2 cm in diameter); IFA: Immunofluorescence assay.