Bartonella spp. Prevalence (serology, culture, and PCR) in sanitary workers in La Rioja Spain

Abstract

Bartonella spp. are increasingly implicated in association with a spectrum of zoonotic infectious diseases. One hundred sanitary workers in La Rioja, Spain completed a questionnaire and provided blood specimens for Bartonella spp. serology and Bartonella alpha‐Proteobacteria growth medium (BAPGM) enrichment blood culture/PCR. Six immunofluorescence assays (IFA) were performed and aseptically obtained blood specimens were inoculated into liquid BAPGM and subcultured onto blood agar plates. Bartonella DNA was amplified using conventional and real‐time PCR assays. The Bartonella spp., strain, or genotype was determined by DNA sequencing. Bartonella seroreactivity was documented in 83.1% and bloodstream infection in 21.6% of participants. Bartonella henselae, B. vinsonii subsp. berkhoffii genotypes I and III, and B. quintana were identified. IFA seroreactivity and PCR positivity were not statistically associated with self‐reported symptoms. Our results suggest that exposure to and non‐clinical infection with Bartonella spp. may occur more often than previously suspected in the La Rioja region.