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. 2022 Feb 2;17(2):e0263239.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0263239. eCollection 2022.

Impact of Q-fever on physical and psychosocial functioning until 8 years after Coxiella burnetii infection: An integrative data analysis

Daphne F M Reukers  1 , Cornelia H M van Jaarsveld  1 , Reinier P Akkermans  1   2 , Stephan P Keijmel  3 , Gabriella Morroy  4 , Adriana S G van Dam  4 , Peter C Wever  5 , Cornelia C H Wielders  6 , Koos van der Velden  1 , Joris A F van Loenhout  1   7 , Jeannine L A Hautvast  1
Affiliations

Impact of Q-fever on physical and psychosocial functioning until 8 years after Coxiella burnetii infection: An integrative data analysis

Daphne F M Reukers et al. PLoS One. .

Abstract

Background: This study aimed to determine short- and long-term physical and psychosocial impact of Coxiella burnetii infection in three distinct entities: Q-fever fatigue syndrome (QFS), chronic Q-fever, and patients with past acute Q-fever without QFS or chronic Q-fever.

Methods: Integrative data analysis was performed, combining original data from eight studies measuring quality of life (QoL), fatigue, physical and social functioning with identical validated questionnaires, from three months to eight years after onset infection. Linear trends in each outcome were compared between Q-fever groups using multilevel linear regression analyses to account for repeated measures within patients.

Results: Data included 3947 observations of 2313 individual patients (228 QFS, 135 chronic Q-fever and 1950 patients with past acute Q-fever). In the first years following infection, physical and psychosocial impact was highest among QFS patients, and remained high without significant improvements over time. In chronic Q-fever patients, QoL and physical functioning worsened significantly over time. Levels of fatigue and social participation in patients with past acute Q-fever improved significantly over time.

Conclusion: The impact differs greatly between the three Q-fever groups. It is important that physicians are aware of these differences, in order to provide relevant care for each patient group.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1. Flowchart of included studies from literature search.
Fig 2
Fig 2. Number of observations per Q-fever group and time point.
QFS = Q-fever fatigue syndrome.
Fig 3
Fig 3. Error bars representing the estimated mean and 95% confidence interval (corrected for gender) of every outcome measure (fatigue, quality of life, physical impairment and social participation) on every time point since acute Q-fever infection separate for every Q-fever group.
1Participants with a score higher (fatigue, physical impairment) or lower (Quality of Life) than the cut-off value are classified as ‘impaired’ in that specific domain. QFS = Q-fever fatigue syndrome.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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