The Prevalence of Antibodies against Sandfly Fever Viruses and West Nile Virus in Cyprus

Background: Sandfly fever is an incapacitating disease caused by sandflyborne Phleboviruses that can lead to men #xAD;ingitis, encephalitis or meningoencephalitis. West Nile virus (WNV), a mosquitoborne Flavivirus, can induce neu #xAD;roinvasive disease manifested by meningitis, encephalitis or acute flaccid paralysis. Both vectors are endemic in Cy #xAD;prus and very active during summer. The aims of this study were to determine first the prevalence of sandfly fever viruses (SFV) and WNV infections in Cyprus and second, to investigate their role in central nervous system (CNS) infections. Methods: For the prevalence study, 327 sera collected in 2013 and 2014 were tested for antiSFV and antiWNV IgG using indirect immunofluorescence assay and ELISA, respectively. In order to investigate a possible role of SFV and WNV in CNS infections, 127 sera of patients presenting symptoms of SFV or WNV infections were screened for IgM specific to SFV and WNV. Results: The overall antiSFV IgG seroprevalence was 28% and was increasing with age (P lt; 0.01). The seropreva #xAD;lence rate for antiWNV IgG in Cyprus was 5%. Concerning the role of SFVs in CNS infections, antiSFV IgM was detected in 8 out of 127 sera from selected patients presenting relevant symptoms of infections during vector #x2019;s active period. In addition, antiWNV IgM were detected in 17 out of the 127 patients with compatible symptoms. Conclusion: The findings confirm the presence of sandfly fever and WNV in Cyprus and should, therefore, be con #xAD;sidered in the differential diagnosis of patients with febrile illness/meningitis.