IJCM_309A: Epidemiological Trends, Clinical Features, and Outcomes in Scrub typhus patients admitted to a tertiary care hospital in Odisha

Background: Scrub typhus is an emerging public health threat in South-Asian countries; with the growing number of cases in India, an understanding of local patterns of disease and factors that place individuals at risk is pivotal to future preventive measures. Objective: To analyze the epidemiological features- annual number of cases, age distribution, sex distribution, and seasonal distribution over the four years. To find out the clinical profile, laboratory features and outcomes of cases of scrub typhus, and to identify the predictors of disease severity. Methodology: A comprehensive retrospective review of scrub typhus cases reported over a 4-year period (2019-2023) was done, with a monthly trend of patients admitted. Data was collected from the case records of patients for demographic characteristics, clinical features, treatment, and outcomes, length of stay (LOS), complications, and mortality. Data was presented in frequencies and proportions, odds ratio (OR) was calculated and a p-value of Results: A total of 886 cases were reported over the four-years. There was a declining epidemiological trend in 2020-21 and then an increasing one. Scrub typhus cases exhibited seasonality, with a peak incidence during winter season. Males were more commonly affected (58.01%), and the age group most susceptible was 19-64 years (52.22%), followed by one-month to 18years (32.22%). Clinical presentations typically included fever (96%), eschar formation (8%) and rash (8%). Complications like pneumonia (13.88%) and AKI (11.73%), were observed in a significant proportion of cases. Mortality was reported in 4.40% of cases. Altered sensorium, deranged LFT, hypotension requiring ionotropic support, requirement of ventilatory support predicted poor outcome. Conclusion: Scrub typhus was seen to cause a multi-system infection among the studied population, causing significant morbidity and mortality. The conditions found associated with poor outcome and mortality can be used as risk factor predictors and help patient management.