Seropositivity diagnosis for hantavirus in Jataí, Goiás State, Brazil.

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: Emerging diseases are of great interest, especially those associated with high mortality rates such as hantaviruses. We aimed to conduct a seroepidemiological survey to determine the levels of hantavirus infection. METHODS: In-house enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to detect specific antibodies. RESULTS: Of the 429 samples collected, seropositivity of 3.9% to anti-hantavirus immunoglobulin G (IgG) was observed (CI 95% 2.3-5.7). Moreover, in three cases, immunoglobulin M (IgM) was detected, of which two were diagnosed as hantavirus cardiopulmonary syndrome (HCPS). CONCLUSIONS: Our data indicate the considerable occurrence of previous hantavirus infections, highlighting occurrences from sub-clinical cases to HCPS.