Sero-Prevalence of Dengue in A Sub-Urban Region

Introduction: Dengue has become endemic in India withoutbreaks occurring almost every year. Detection of denguespecific IgM and IgG antibodies forms an important tool indiagnosis and prevalence studies. Our goal was to screen patientsfor dengue antibodies to establish the sero-prevalence.Material and Methods: The study was conducted in a tertiarycare teaching institute from Jan-Dec. 2008. Blood samples of103 clinically suspected cases of dengue were collected fromvarious OPDs and IPDs. Detection of IgM and IgG antibodieswas done by enzyme immunoassay (EIA) based on an immunocaptureprinciple.Results: Of the total samples 76.69% were positive for dengueantibodies with dominance of paediatric population.Maximum samples (74.68%) were positive for IgG antibodiesfollowed by a combination of IgM + IgG antibodies (18.98%)and least for IgM antibodies (6.32%).Conclusion: Though less specific compared to NS1 antigenassay IgM / IgG antibody detection still forms mainstay ofdiagnosis of dengue in peripheral and resource poor settings.