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Quantitative real-time PCR in Borrelia persica tick-borne relapsing fever demonstrates correlation with the Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction

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Abstract

The purpose of this study is to explore whether a correlation exists between the bacterial load of Borrelia persica in tick-borne relapsing fever (TBRF), established by quantitative real-time PCR, and the development of Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction (JHR) after the initiation of antibiotic treatment. Forty-two blood samples were included in our study. The mean bacterial load, as established by real-time PCR, in patients who developed JHR was significantly greater than in those patients who did not develop JHR (443,293 copies vs. 140,598, p = 0.035). Accordingly, real-time PCR may assist clinicians in identifying patients at higher risk of JHR.

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Author notes

  1. Adin Breuer and Orli Megged contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pediatrics, Shaare Zedek Medical Center, 12 Shmuel Bait St., PO Box 3235, 9103102, Jerusalem, Israel

    Adin Breuer & Orli Megged

  2. Pediatric Infectious Diseases Unit, Shaare Zedek Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel

    Orli Megged

  3. Faculty of Medicine, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel

    Orli Megged & Marc Victor Assous

  4. Clinical Microbiology and Immunology Laboratory, Shaare Zedek Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel

    Livnat Kashat & Marc Victor Assous

Authors
  1. Adin Breuer
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  2. Orli Megged
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  3. Livnat Kashat
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  4. Marc Victor Assous
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Contributions

Orli Megged and Marc Assous designed the study. Adin Breuer and Orli Megged collected, analyzed, and interpreted the data. Livnat Kashat and Marc Assous conducted the laboratory testing. Adin Breuer, Orli Megged, and Marc Assous prepared the manuscript, which all authors reviewed and approved for publication.

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Correspondence to Adin Breuer.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Breuer, A., Megged, O., Kashat, L. et al. Quantitative real-time PCR in Borrelia persica tick-borne relapsing fever demonstrates correlation with the Jarisch-Herxheimer reaction. Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis 40, 1113–1116 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10096-020-04148-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10096-020-04148-4

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