Prevalence of patients with acute febrile illnesses and positive dengue NS1 tests in a tertiary hospital in Papua New Guinea

Viola Asigau; Evelyn K Lavu; William J H McBride; Eric Biloh; Francis Naroi; Egi Koana; John K Ferguson; Moses Laman

doi:10.4269/ajtmh.14-0373

Prevalence of patients with acute febrile illnesses and positive dengue NS1 tests in a tertiary hospital in Papua New Guinea

Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2015 Jan;92(1):72-4. doi: 10.4269/ajtmh.14-0373. Epub 2014 Oct 20.

Authors

Viola Asigau¹, Evelyn K Lavu¹, William J H McBride¹, Eric Biloh¹, Francis Naroi¹, Egi Koana¹, John K Ferguson¹, Moses Laman²

Affiliations

¹ Pathology Laboratory, Port Moresby General Hospital, Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea; School of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Papua New Guinea, Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea; Central Public Health Laboratory, Port Moresby General Hospital, Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea; James Cook University, School of Medicine and Dentistry, Cairns Base Hospital, Cairns, Australia; John Hunter Hospital, New Castle, New South Wales, Australia; Papua New Guinea Institute of Medical Research, Madang, Papua New Guinea.
² Pathology Laboratory, Port Moresby General Hospital, Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea; School of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Papua New Guinea, Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea; Central Public Health Laboratory, Port Moresby General Hospital, Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea; James Cook University, School of Medicine and Dentistry, Cairns Base Hospital, Cairns, Australia; John Hunter Hospital, New Castle, New South Wales, Australia; Papua New Guinea Institute of Medical Research, Madang, Papua New Guinea [email protected].

Abstract

Because the prevalence of dengue fever in urban settings in Papua New Guinea is unknown, we investigated the presence of dengue using the NS1 antigen test in an outpatient-based prospective observational study at Port Moresby General Hospital. Of 140 patients with acute febrile illnesses, dengue fever was diagnosed in 14.9% (20 of 134; 95% confidence interval [95% CI] = 9.6-22.4). Malaria (2 of 137; 1.5%; 95% CI = 0.3-5.7), chikungunya (3 of 140; 2.1%; 95% CI = 0.6-6.6), and bacterial bloodstream infections (0 of 80; 0%; 95% CI = 0-5.7) were uncommon. Dengue fever should no longer be considered rare in Papua New Guinea.

MeSH terms

Dengue / epidemiology*
Female
Fever / epidemiology*
Humans
Male
Papua New Guinea / epidemiology
Prevalence
Tertiary Care Centers*