Stability of Coxiella burnetii in stored human blood

摘要

BackgroundCoxiella burnetii, an obligate intracellular organism, is the causative agent of the zoonotic disease Q fever. The seroprevalence rate for Q fever in the United States is 3.1%, suggesting a high number of infections each year. However, less than 200 cases of Q fever are reported to the CDC annually. This discrepancy is likely the result of underutilized diagnostics and a high percentage (>50%) of asymptomatic infections. The detection of C. burnetii in patient blood during the first 2–3 weeks of infection raises the possibility that the organism could be present in donated human blood. The purpose of this study was to determine if extracellular C. burnetii would be stable in blood under normal storage conditions.