Factors Associated with Patients Suffering from Melioidosis at the Khok Sri Suphan Hospital, Sakonnakhon Province

Abstract

The aim of this matched case-control study was to investigate factors associated
with meliodiosis among patients admitted at the Khok Sri Suphan Hospital during October
1st, 2012, to March 31st, 2014. There were 234 melioidosis patients and sex matched
controls being patients diagnosed with a number of various diseases at the same day. The
data collected by a structured questionnaire and taken from patients’ medical records and
were analyzed using conditional logistic regression to compute matched adjusted odds
ratio(mORadj), with 95% confidence intervals (95%CI) and p-values. For the multivariate
analysis, statistical significance was set at p<0.05.
The results show that the factors significantly associated with melioidosis were a
educational level below a than secondary degree (mORadj = 3.38; 95%CI = 1.72-6.63; pvalue
<0.001).Being a farmer was also related significantly to the disese (mORadj =2.34;
95%CI = 1.34-4.06; p-value = 0.003).Another risk factor was related to, drinking untreated
water (mORadj =2.34; 95%CI = 1.03-5.30; p-value = 0.042), and not washing hands before
eating (mORadj =2.62; 95%CI = 1.31-5.23; p-value = 0.006). Suffering from a chronic disease
was also a major risk factor with underlying chronic diseases (mORadj = 3.21; 95%CI = 1.67-
6.19; p-value <0.001), and this applied especially to diabetes mellitus (mORadj = 3.86;
95%CI = 1.38-10.78; p-value = 0.010). Being only recently a resident to the area of Khok Si
Suphanlower for less than a year turned out also to be a rsik factor (mORadj =3.15; 95%CI =
1.60-6.19; p-value = 0.001).
The study found that Melioidosis should be had various clinical manifestation.
Symtoms and severity of the disease depends on location of infection and immunity to
disease. Those who lived in the area for a long time, the body has natural immunity differ
from who stay in the area, not have immunity and had more severe symtoms.