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. 2023 Sep 20;168(10):254.
doi: 10.1007/s00705-023-05870-y.

Asymptomatic arbovirus and campylobacter infections in German travelers to Asia

Werner Dammermann  1   2 , Isabel-Elena Haller  1 , Katrin Singethan  1   3 , Christof D Vinnemeier  2   4 , Florian Hentschel  5   6
Affiliations

Asymptomatic arbovirus and campylobacter infections in German travelers to Asia

Werner Dammermann et al. Arch Virol. .

Abstract

The true risk for many travel diseases is unknown because most studies do not detect asymptomatic infections. In this study, we performed ELISA for dengue virus (DENV), chikungunya virus (CHIKV), Zika virus (ZIKV), hepatitis E virus (HEV), and Campylobacter jejuni on samples from 81 healthy Germans before and after they traveled to Asia. ELISA found five seroconversions for C. jejuni, two for DENV, one for ZIKV, and zero for HEV. For CHIKV, three subjects were positive before travel and negative afterwards. None had symptoms. These infections would have gone unnoticed by retrospective studies. Therefore, the risk for these infections may be higher than previously estimated.

Keywords: Campylobacter jejuni; Chikungunya; Dengue; ELISA; Hepatitis E; Zika.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that no competing interests exist.

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