Seroprevalence and Factors Associated with Scrub Typhus Infection among Forestry Workers in National Park Offices in South Korea
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Study Population
2.2. Data Collection
2.3. Serologic Testing
2.4. Statistical Analysis
2.5. Ethics
3. Results
3.1. Demographic Characteristics and Serologic Results
3.2. Univariate Analysis of Scrub Typhus Seroprevalence and Potential Risk Factors
3.3. Multivariate Analysis of Scrub Typhus Seroprevalence and Potential Risk Factors
4. Discussion
5. Conclusions
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Titer | IgG | IgM | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
No. | % | No. | % | |
<1:16 | 667 | 92.9 | 687 | 95.7 |
1:16 | 13 | 1.8 | 18 | 2.5 |
1:32 | 17 | 2.4 | 8 | 1.1 |
1:64 | 8 | 1.1 | 3 | 0.4 |
1:128 | 7 | 1.0 | 2 | 0.3 |
≥1:256 | 6 | 0.8 | 0 | 0.0 |
Total | 718 | 100.0 | 718 | 100.0 |
Variables | Total | Seroprevalence No. (%) | OR (95% CI) | p Value a |
---|---|---|---|---|
Sex | ||||
Men | 545 | 27 (5.0) | 1.08 (0.48–2.41) | 0.861 |
Women | 173 | 8 (4.6) | Reference | |
Age (years) | ||||
<29 | 109 | 3 (2.8) | Reference | |
30–49 | 366 | 16 (4.4) | 1.62 (0.46–5.65) | 0.453 |
≥50 | 243 | 16 (6.6) | 2.49 (0.71–8.73) | 0.154 |
Duration of work (years) | ||||
<5 | 295 | 8 (2.7) | Reference | |
5–<15 | 288 | 12 (4.2) | 1.56 (0.63–3.87) | 0.338 |
≥15 | 135 | 15 (11.1) | 4.48 (1.85–10.86) | 0.001 |
Region | ||||
Northeastern | 229 | 14 (6.1) | Reference | |
Southwestern | 489 | 21 (4.3) | 0.69 (0.34–1.38) | 0.294 |
Organization types | ||||
Main National Park Offices | 466 | 20 (4.3) | Reference | |
Branch National Park Offices | 252 | 15 (6.0) | 1.41 (0.71–2.81) | 0.326 |
Education | ||||
High school or less | 239 | 16 (6.7) | 1.73 (0.87–3.44) | 0.115 |
University or more | 478 | 19 (4.0) | Reference |
Variables | Total | Seroprevalence No. (%) | OR (95% CI) | p Value a |
---|---|---|---|---|
Monitoring of natural resources | ||||
Yes | 301 | 11 (3.7) | 0.62 (0.30–1.29) | 0.198 |
No | 416 | 24 (5.8) | Reference | |
Repairing facilities | ||||
Yes | 464 | 26 (5.6) | 1.61 (0.74–3.49) | 0.228 |
No | 253 | 9 (3.6) | Reference | |
Supervision of illegal activities | ||||
Yes | 427 | 23 (5.4) | 1.32 (0.65–2.69) | 0.448 |
No | 290 | 12 (4.1) | Reference | |
Patrolling | ||||
Yes | 595 | 31 (5.2) | 1.62 (0.56–4.68) | 0.372 |
No | 122 | 4 (3.3) | Reference | |
Guiding visitors | ||||
Yes | 445 | 25 (5.6) | 1.57 (0.74–3.31) | 0.241 |
No | 273 | 10 (3.7) | Reference | |
Exploration program | ||||
Yes | 174 | 7 (4.0) | 0.77 (0.33–1.80) | 0.550 |
No | 544 | 28 (5.1) | Reference | |
Grass mowing | ||||
Yes | 324 | 15 (4.6) | 0.91 (0.46–1.80) | 0.776 |
No | 393 | 20 (5.1) | Reference | |
Cleaning | ||||
Yes | 366 | 21 (5.7) | 1.47 (0.73–2.93) | 0.280 |
No | 351 | 14 (4.0) | Reference |
Variables | Total | Seroprevalence No. (%) | OR (95% CI) | p Value a |
---|---|---|---|---|
During outdoor work | ||||
Wearing a long-sleeved shirt | ||||
Yes | 601 | 30 (5.0) | 1.17 (0.44–3.07) | 0.755 |
No | 116 | 5 (4.3) | Reference | |
Wearing long pants | ||||
Yes | 681 | 35 (5.1) | NA | 0.998 |
No | 37 | 0 (0.0) | Reference | |
Wearing gloves | ||||
Yes | 602 | 29 (4.8) | 0.92 (0.37–2.27) | 0.855 |
No | 115 | 6 (5.2) | Reference | |
Wearing boots | ||||
Yes | 577 | 28 (4.9) | 1.14 (0.46–2.81) | 0.777 |
No | 140 | 6 (4.3) | Reference | |
Wearing a hat | ||||
Yes | 537 | 25 (4.7) | 0.92 (0.42–2.01) | 0.839 |
No | 179 | 9 (5.0) | Reference | |
Using insect repellents | ||||
Yes | 127 | 4 (3.1) | 0.63 (0.22–1.82) | 0.389 |
No | 588 | 29 (4.9) | Reference | |
Resting on the grass | ||||
Yes | 117 | 6 (5.1) | 1.07 (0.43–2.63) | 0.889 |
No | 601 | 29 (4.8) | Reference | |
Using a mat to rest | ||||
Yes | 196 | 10 (5.1) | 1.06 (0.50–2.26) | 0.871 |
No | 520 | 25 (4.8) | Reference | |
Eating meals in woodland | ||||
Yes | 180 | 6 (3.3) | 0.60 (0.25–1.48) | 0.270 |
No | 537 | 29 (5.4) | Reference | |
Defecating/urinating in woodland | ||||
Yes | 64 | 4 (6.3) | 1.34 (0.46–3.92) | 0.594 |
No | 654 | 31 (4.7) | Reference | |
After outdoor work | ||||
Taking a shower | ||||
Yes | 612 | 28 (4.6) | 0.68 (0.29–1.59) | 0.373 |
No | 106 | 7 (6.6) | Reference | |
Taking a bath | ||||
Yes | 341 | 16 (4.7) | 0.98 (0.49–1.95) | 0.952 |
No | 376 | 18 (4.8) | Reference | |
Changing working clothes daily | ||||
Yes | 526 | 24 (4.6) | 0.79 (0.38–1.64) | 0.521 |
No | 192 | 11 (5.7) | Reference | |
Washing working clothes daily | ||||
Yes | 546 | 20 (3.7) | 0.40 (0.20–0.80) | 0.009 |
No | 172 | 15 (8.7) | Reference |
Variables | Total | Seroprevalence No. (%) | OR (95% CI) | p Value a |
---|---|---|---|---|
Additional jobs | ||||
Rice farming | ||||
Yes | 22 | 1 (4.5) | 0.93 (0.12–7.10) | 0.942 |
No | 696 | 34 (4.9) | Reference | |
Dry field farming | ||||
Yes | 100 | 10 (10.0) | 2.64 (1.23–5.67) | 0.013 |
No | 618 | 25 (4.0) | Reference | |
Orchard farming | ||||
Yes | 26 | 2 (7.7) | 1.66 (0.38–7.34) | 0.501 |
No | 692 | 33 (4.8) | Reference | |
Livestock farming | ||||
Yes | 16 | 0 (0.0) | NA | 0.999 |
No | 702 | 35 (5.0) | Reference | |
Raising animals | ||||
Dogs (outside homes) | ||||
Yes | 78 | 3 (3.8) | 0.76 (0.23–2.54) | 0.656 |
No | 640 | 32 (5.0) | Reference | |
Dogs (inside homes) | ||||
Yes | 52 | 4 (7.7) | 1.71 (0.58–5.04) | 0.333 |
No | 666 | 31 (4.7) | Reference | |
Cats | ||||
Yes | 32 | 0 (0.0) | NA | 0.998 |
No | 686 | 35 (5.1) | Reference | |
Recognition of scrub typhus | ||||
Yes | 680 | 31 (4.6) | 0.41 (0.14–1.22) | 0.107 |
No | 38 | 4 (10.5) | Reference |
Variables | OR (95% CI) | p Value |
---|---|---|
Duration of work (years) | ||
<5 | Reference | |
5– < 15 | 1.41 (0.56–3.52) | 0.467 |
≥15 | 4.19 (1.71–10.28) | 0.002 |
Washing working clothes daily | ||
Yes | 0.37 (0.18–0.75) | 0.006 |
No | Reference | |
Dry field farming | ||
Yes | 2.47 (1.12–5.46) | 0.025 |
No | Reference |
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Park, J.-H.; Gill, B.; Acharya, D.; Yoo, S.-J.; Lee, K.; Lee, J. Seroprevalence and Factors Associated with Scrub Typhus Infection among Forestry Workers in National Park Offices in South Korea. Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2021, 18, 3131. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18063131
Park J-H, Gill B, Acharya D, Yoo S-J, Lee K, Lee J. Seroprevalence and Factors Associated with Scrub Typhus Infection among Forestry Workers in National Park Offices in South Korea. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2021; 18(6):3131. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18063131
Chicago/Turabian StylePark, Ji-Hyuk, Byoungchul Gill, Dilaram Acharya, Seok-Ju Yoo, Kwan Lee, and Jeongmin Lee. 2021. "Seroprevalence and Factors Associated with Scrub Typhus Infection among Forestry Workers in National Park Offices in South Korea" International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 18, no. 6: 3131. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph18063131