Detection of Dengue Virus IgM Seropositivity and Malaria Co-infection among Individuals Resident on the Banks of River Niger in Anambra State, Nigeria

Background: Dengue virus (DENV) is the cause of Dengue fever and it is a mosquito-borne, RNA virus. This study was aimed at determining Dengue virus Immunoglobulin M seropositivity and malaria co-infection among residents of the river Niger Banks.

Materials and Methods: A cross sectional study consisting of 96 subjects was performed. The subjects were recruited using the convenience sampling technique. Ethical approval was obtained and informed consent was sought from study participants. Questionnaire was administered to determine basic demographic information. Dengue Virus IgM was analysed using ELISA techniques. Malaria parasitaemia was detected using microscopy while packed cell volume (PCV) and haemoglobin (Hb) analysis were evaluated using manual methods. Statistical analysis was performed using the statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) version 21.

Results: The results showed that the prevalence of Dengue virus and malaria seropositivity among the study population was 17.7% and 36.5% respectively. The incidence of malaria was higher in those who were dengue virus negative (33.3%) than in those who tested positive to Dengue virus (3.1%). Dengue virus seropositive patients had significantly lower PCV (37.5±3.7) and Hb (12.9±1.14) compared to those who were negative to dengue virus, 38.8±3.5 and 13.3±1.17 respectively.

Conclusion: Our report has revealed that dengue virus is an emerging cause of febrile illness among the study population. This could be due to the nature of their environment which supports the breeding of different species of mosquito. This calls for urgent intervention and large scale research to confirm the circulating strains of the Dengue virus.