ABSTRACT
We report a record high pertussis epidemic in Denmark since August 2023. Highest incidence was in adolescents, while peak incidence in infants was lower vs previous epidemics in 2019 and 2016. Among infants aged 0-2 months, over half (29/48) were hospitalised and one infant died, underlining the disease severity in the youngest. To protect infants, pertussis vaccination in pregnant women was introduced in January 2024 in the national vaccination programme. Improved vaccination surveillance in pregnant women is being implemented.
Subject(s)
Whooping Cough , Infant , Adolescent , Humans , Female , Pregnancy , Whooping Cough/epidemiology , Whooping Cough/prevention & control , Bordetella pertussis , Vaccination , Pregnant Women , Incidence , Denmark/epidemiology , Pertussis VaccineABSTRACT
Scrub typhus is caused by the mite-borne bacterium Orientia tsutsugamushi. Imported cases have been suspected in Denmark but no diagnostic method has yet been available to confirm the diagnosis. This is a case report of a 38-year-old male admitted to hospital with high fever, severe malaise and headache after returning from Malaysia. Scrub typhus was suspected and the patient recovered after one week of doxycycline treatment. The pathogen was identified by use of microbiome 16S/18S rRNA next-generation sequencing on ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA) blood, which in the future may serve an important role in the investigation of travel-associated infections.
Subject(s)
Orientia tsutsugamushi , Scrub Typhus , Male , Humans , Adult , Orientia tsutsugamushi/genetics , Scrub Typhus/complications , Scrub Typhus/diagnosis , Scrub Typhus/microbiology , Travel , Doxycycline/therapeutic use , Travel-Related Illness , RNA, Ribosomal, 16SABSTRACT
We describe the case of an immunocompetent 75-year-old man with Capnocytophaga canimorsus bacteraemia and meningitis. C. canimorsus is commonly found in the oral flora of dogs with human infection typically occurring following a bite. Unusually, while our patient was a dog owner, there was no history of bite nor scratch mark. Admission blood cultures flagged positive for Gram-negative bacilli, but prolonged molecular analysis was required before C. canimorsus was isolated in blood and cerebrospinal fluid. There is a high mortality rate in invasive infection, and in our patient's case, antibiotic therapy was commenced prior to laboratory confirmation with our patient making a complete recovery. This case highlights the importance of including C. canimorsus in the differential diagnosis of unwell patients who keep dogs, even without a bite. This case occurred amid heightened awareness of COVID-19, which may represent predisposition for zoonoses during social isolation and increased human-pet contact.
