Determinants of Scrub Typhus: A Case Control Study in Tribal Region of Eastern Maharashtra
Introduction: Scrub typhus is public health problem in South East Asian Region and also it is of rising concern in India. Eastern part of Maharashtra state is highly vulnerable to the disease as it is under forest cover. This region is presently witnessing outbreak of scrub typhus. The present case control study aims to understand determinants of the scrub typhus in this geographical location. Material & Methods: Operational definition for scrub typhus cases used in present study was “Individuals who are positive for IgM Elisa of Scrub typhus”. Cases of scrub typhus reported to health system that comply with the operational definition were recruited. Individually matched controls were selected from the same village. Matching was done for age, sex, socioeconomic status and residence. Total 16 cases and 32 controls were enrolled and compared for socio-demographic, environmental and behavioral domains. Results: Clinical menifestations among cases were Fever, malaise, headache, escahar and rash. The most common sites of escar was groin 3 (42.8%), followed by suprascapular region 2 (28.6%), axilla 1(14.3%) and elbow 1 (14.3%). The risk factors for scrub typhus were vegetations around household within 3 feet range, length of grass blade more than 2 feet, routine work in shrub, engaging in forest related work and activities aroud lake with the odds 5.41 (1.13-25.83), 5.6 (1.24-25.49), 3.66 (1.04- 12.9) 4.2 (1.02-18.02) and 4.59 (1.25-16.77) respectively. Conclusion: Apart from other known risk factors, present study ascertained activities around lake, closeness of vegetations to the household (less than 3 feet) and length of grass blade (more than 2 feet) as new risk factors. These findings may be helpful in developing targeted intervention strategies to control scrub typhus.