Study on the seroprevalence of leptospirosis among various risk groups

Leptospirosis is a zoonosis of economic importance affecting humans and many species of animals. Among the risk groups of leptospirosis veterinarians and persons handling animals find a place (Faine et al., 1999). In canine leptospirosis, the clinical response and severity to natural infections vary with different serovars (Michna, 1970). Different serovars have a propensity to produce clinical disease with particular characteristics, renal, hepatic, and vascular disease are of greatest importance. Hepatic dysfunction usually is associated with serogroups lcterohaemorrhagiae and Pomona while subacute nephritis is associated with the serogroups Canicola and Grippotyphosa. However, all of these serovars of leptospira can produce hepatic or renal failure (Jones et al., 1997).,Senthilkumar (2005) studied seroprevalence of leptospirosis among canines brought to outpatient ward of small animal clinics, Madras Veterinary College, Chennai. Following this, a study was undertaken to find the pattern of seroprevalence among canine outpatients and the veterinarians who attended the dogs and compared the results with the seroprevalence of clinically leptospira suspected human patients in Chennai between Sep. 2005 and Nov. 2005.