Seroepidemiology of Chlamydia Pneumoniae in Northern Greece

Abstract

The prevalence of IgG and IgA antibodies to Chlamydia pneumoniae was evaluated in a group of an apparently healthy population in northern Greece. Serum samples were obtained over a period of one year (June 2006 to May 2007) from 530 individuals (300 males and 230 females, aged from 1 month to 90 years). The sera were tested for specific antibodies to C. pneumoniae by two commercial methods, an ELISA and a micro-IF assay based on the principles of MIF. The prevalence of IgG and IgA antibodies to C. pneumoniae was 53.2% and 45.9%, respectively, and was found to be unrelated to gender, even in the elderly >61 years old. The IgG antibody prevalence was low in children under 5 years old (7.7%), sharply increased by the age of 20 (40%) and continued to increase, gradually, to reach 80.1% in the elderly. IgA antibodies also increased with similar kinetics to IgG, although at a lower level (3.8–66.1%). Our results show that infection with C. pneumoniae is common in northern Greece. The high prevalence of IgA specific antibodies reported in the present study is due to primary infection at a young age, while in the elderly is probably due to infection or reinfection, although the option of persistence cannot be excluded.