Coxiella burnetii infection may be linked to cardiovascular disease

Studies have suggested that infection with some agents (cytomegalovirus, other herpesviruses, and Chlamydia pneumoniae) may play a part in the pathogenesis of cardiovascular disease. On p 284 Lovey et al investigate the possible role of Coxiella burnetii in cardiovascular disease in a Swiss cohort of 2044 men and women exposed in 1983 to the largest outbreak of Q fever reported. Compared with people who tested negative for infection in 1983, participants with acute Q fever had an increase in 12 year mortality and a higher 12 year risk of arterial disease (specifically cerebrovascular accident and cardiac ischaemia), but they did not have an increased incidence of endocarditis or venous thromboembolic disease. C burnetii should be considered as a possible infectious cause of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular diseases.

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Relevant Article

Long term vascular complications of Coxiella burnetii infection in Switzerland: cohort study

Pierre-Yves Lovey, Alfredo Morabia, D Bleed, O Péter, G Dupuis, and J Petite
BMJ 1999 319: 284-286. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]