Burkholderia pseudomallei Antibodies in Children, Cambodia
Burkholderia pseudomallei Antibodies in Children, Cambodia
Antibodies to Burkholderia pseudomallei were detected in 16% of children in Siem Reap, Cambodia. This organism was isolated from 30% of rice paddies in the surrounding vicinity. Despite the lack of reported indigenous cases, melioidosis is likely to occur in Cambodia.
Burkholderia pseudomallei is a soil saprophyte and the cause of melioidosis. This bacterium can be isolated from soil and water in melioidosis-endemic regions of the tropics, where infection is acquired after bacterial inoculation, inhalation, or ingestion. Most reported cases occur in Thailand and northern Australia, but this statistic likely represents a fraction of the true extent of disease because microbial culture, the mainstay of diagnostic confirmation, is not available across much of rural Asia. The largest concentration of confirmed melioidosis cases worldwide occurs in northeast Thailand, where the disease accounts for 20% of all community-acquired septicemias. The death rate for affected adults in this setting is ~50%. Northeast Thailand is bordered by Lao People's Democratic Republic (PDR) to the east and southeast and Cambodia to the south. Melioidosis has recently been recognized in Lao PDR after a diagnostic microbiology laboratory was instituted at Mahosot Hospital, Vientiene, and B. pseudomallei has been isolated from the surrounding environment. By contrast, there are no reports in the literature of indigenous melioidosis or environmental isolation of B. pseudomallei in adjacent Cambodia. Two cases of melioidosis have been reported in Cambodian residents in Canada and the United States, respectively; both persons had spent several years in refugee camps in Thailand. We propose that melioidosis occurs in Cambodia but is unrecognized because of the lack of diagnostic microbiology facilities. The aims of this study were to conduct a seroprevalence study of children living in Siem Reap, Cambodia, to detect the presence of antibodies resulting from exposure to B. pseudomallei, and to determine whether this organism could be isolated from their environment.
Antibodies to Burkholderia pseudomallei were detected in 16% of children in Siem Reap, Cambodia. This organism was isolated from 30% of rice paddies in the surrounding vicinity. Despite the lack of reported indigenous cases, melioidosis is likely to occur in Cambodia.
Burkholderia pseudomallei is a soil saprophyte and the cause of melioidosis. This bacterium can be isolated from soil and water in melioidosis-endemic regions of the tropics, where infection is acquired after bacterial inoculation, inhalation, or ingestion. Most reported cases occur in Thailand and northern Australia, but this statistic likely represents a fraction of the true extent of disease because microbial culture, the mainstay of diagnostic confirmation, is not available across much of rural Asia. The largest concentration of confirmed melioidosis cases worldwide occurs in northeast Thailand, where the disease accounts for 20% of all community-acquired septicemias. The death rate for affected adults in this setting is ~50%. Northeast Thailand is bordered by Lao People's Democratic Republic (PDR) to the east and southeast and Cambodia to the south. Melioidosis has recently been recognized in Lao PDR after a diagnostic microbiology laboratory was instituted at Mahosot Hospital, Vientiene, and B. pseudomallei has been isolated from the surrounding environment. By contrast, there are no reports in the literature of indigenous melioidosis or environmental isolation of B. pseudomallei in adjacent Cambodia. Two cases of melioidosis have been reported in Cambodian residents in Canada and the United States, respectively; both persons had spent several years in refugee camps in Thailand. We propose that melioidosis occurs in Cambodia but is unrecognized because of the lack of diagnostic microbiology facilities. The aims of this study were to conduct a seroprevalence study of children living in Siem Reap, Cambodia, to detect the presence of antibodies resulting from exposure to B. pseudomallei, and to determine whether this organism could be isolated from their environment.
