Sero Determination of the Baseline Titre of Widal Test in Port Harcourt, Rivers State

Abstract

Enteric fever, also known as typhoid fever, is caused by Salmonella typhi, is a disease that is endemic in the tropic and sub-tropic regions of the world and has become a major public health concern in the developing world with an estimated annual incidence of 540 cases per 100,000 patients. Salmonella species are intracellular pathogens with some serotypes causing serious illness. The study aims to sero determination of the baseline titre of Widal test in port harcourt, Rivers State. Although typhoid fever is widespread in various regions of the world, the genuine burden of the infection is weakly defined within most endemic countries. This research was carried out in Rivers State. Samples were collected from both febrile and non-febrile patients in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. This study was a comparative study, and a random sampling method was used to carry out the research. Blood samples were collected from one thousand (1000) subjects in Port Harcourt of Rivers State, which comprised febrile and nonfebrile patients attending various hospitals in Port Harcourt, Rivers State were examined. A well-designed questionnaire was administered to the patients. Ethical approval was sought and obtained from various hospitals based in Port Harcourt before commencement of the study. Sample processing for this study was the Widal test using a blood sample for both the Tube and Tile Methods. The result showed that the distribution of typhoidal antibodies of Salmonella typhi H and O using the tube method revealed that 950 (95%) of the studied population had non-significant typhoidal antibody reactions, while 50(5.0%) showed significant typhoidal antibody reactions (from 1:80 above) by the tube method. The agglutinins for enteric fever in apparently healthy individuals in the population are low. The baseline titre of Salmonella typhi O and H Widal antibody titre is 1:160. Therefore, the significant titre for the presumptive diagnosis of typhoid in Rivers State is 1:160 or above for somatic O and flagellar H antibodies, while 1:80 or below should be regarded as non-significant. Efforts should be made to intensify efforts via NGO to periodically review the baseline titre.