An outbreak of psittacosis in a boys' boarding school

J Hyg (Lond). 1984 Jun;92(3):337-43. doi: 10.1017/s002217240006455x.

Abstract

In 1980, an outbreak of a mild illness involving twenty pupils and four adults in a boys' boarding school was identified serologically as psittacosis. Intensive epidemiological investigations did not uncover the source. It is suggested either that sources of chlamydia other than avian exist, which may produce a milder illness than the avian type, or that human-to-human spread of a mild form of chlamydiosis occurs.

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Antibodies, Bacterial / analysis
  • Chlamydophila psittaci / immunology
  • Complement Fixation Tests
  • Disease Outbreaks*
  • England
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Psittacosis / epidemiology*
  • Psittacosis / immunology
  • Schools

Substances

  • Antibodies, Bacterial