Low circulation of bacteria Leptospira spp. in an urban area from North India: A post-COVID-19 two-year surveillance investigation

Abstract

This study analysed the epidemiology of leptospirosis, an overlooked zoonotic bacterial disease, at a reference core hospital of New Delhi, India, following the latest pandemic coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). A study was conducted from August 2022 to September 2023 at the Safdarjung Hospital, a reference health facility in New Delhi, India. Standard antibody-targeting assays were used for the diagnosis of leptospirosis. All Leptospira spp. infection cases were tested for dengue, malaria, chikungunya, scrub typhus, and typhoid using standard kits. Data were analysed with SPSS v16 software, and statistical significance was set at p-value 0.05) from those reported before COVID-19 at the same study site. The patients mainly females, were between 15 – 33 years of age. Common symptoms included fever, generalised body aches, myalgia, and nausea/vomiting. This study underscores a low circulation of Leptospira spp. Delhi, and no impact of COVID-19 on the burden. Also, there is a need to conduct community studies to confirm this hospital-based evidence.

Keywords

• Leptospirosis
• epidemiology
• COVID-19, surveillance
• Delhi