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Am. J. Trop. Med. Hyg., 81(3), 2009, pp. 438-442
Copyright © 2009 by The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene

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Exposure of Seasonal Migrant Workers to Onchocerca volvulus on Coffee Plantations in Guatemala

Kim A. Lindblade*, Michael Richards, Jane Richards, Rodrigo J. Gonzalez, Nancy Cruz-Ortiz, Guillermo Zea-Flores, Alba Lucia Morales, Mauricio Sauerbrey, Julio Castro, Eduard Catú, Byron Arana, Frank O. Richards, Jr, AND Robert E. Klein
Division of Parasitic Diseases, National Center for Zoonotic, Vector-Borne and Enteric Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia; Centro de Estudios en Salud, Universidad del Valle de Guatemala, Guatemala City, Guatemala; Onchocerciasis Elimination Program of the Americas, Guatemala City, Guatemala; Ministerio de Salud Publica y Asistencia Social, Guatemala City, Guatemala; Carter Center, Atlanta, Georgia

Onchocerciasis (river blindness), which is close to being eliminated from Guatemala through semiannual administration of ivermectin, is still transmitted in one area of the country that coincidentally receives an annual influx of migrant workers to harvest coffee. Migrant workers generally are not included in semiannual ivermectin treatments, but if infected could serve as a reservoir. We report on two studies undertaken to measure the exposure to onchocerciasis (presence of IgG4 antibodies to a recombinant Onchocerca volvulus antigen, OV-16) among migrant workers. During two coffee harvest seasons, 170 migrant workers with a history of working in the disease-endemic area were tested and 1 (0.6%, 95% confidence interval = 0–3.2%) was seropositive. This low rate of exposure in migrant workers indicates that they are unlikely to play a significant role in transmission of onchocerciasis and may indicate that transmission in the last remaining disease-endemic area of Guatemala is decreasing significantly.

Received January 31, 2009. Accepted for publication April 1, 2009.

Acknowledgments: We thank Mynor Lopez, Jorge Sincal, Auri Paniagua, and Marvin Chiquitá for data collection; Estuardo Barrios for assistance with mapping; the Directors of the Health Areas of Suchitépequez, Sololá, and Chimaltenango, and their district health teams for assistance; the owners and administrators of the coffee plantations where these surveys were completed for their cooperation; the migrant workers and their families for their participation; and the administrative staff of the Centro de Estudios en Salud of the Universidad del Valle de Guatemala for their support.

Financial support: These studies were supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Atlanta, GA) and the OEPA (Guatemala City, Guatemala). The OEPA funds were provided through a grant by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (Seattle, WA) to The Carter Center (Atlanta, GA).

Disclaimer: The findings and conclusions in this report are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

* Address correspondence to Kim A. Lindblade, Regional Office for Central America and Panama, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Universidad del Valle de Guatemala, 18 Avenida 11-95, Zona 15 VH III, Apartado Postal No. 82, Guatemala City, Guatemala. E-mail: kil2{at}cdc.gov

Authors’ addresses: Kim A. Lindblade and Robert E. Klein, Regional Office for Central America and Panama, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Universidad del Valle de Guatemala, 18 Avenida 11-95, Zona 15 VH III, Apartado Postal No. 82, Guatemala City, Guatemala, E-mails: kil2{at}cdc.gov and roeklein64{at}gmail.com. Michael Richards, Jane Richards, Rodrigo J. Gonzalez, Nancy Cruz-Ortiz, and Byron Arana, Centro de Estudios en Salud, Universidad del Valle de Guatemala, 18 Avenida 11-95, Zona 15 VH III, Apartado Postal No. 82, Guatemala City, Guatemala, E-mails: mf_richards{at}yahoo.com, jane.e.richards{at}uth.tmc.edu, rjgonzal{at}med.unc.edu, ncruz{at}gt.cdc.gov, and barana{at}gt.cdc.gov. Guillermo Zea-Flores, Alba Lucia Morales, and Mauricio Sauerbrey, Onchocerciasis Elimination Program of the Americas, 14 Calle 3-51, Oficina 14-01 Zona 10, Guatemala City, 01010 Guatemala, E-mails: gzea{at}oepa.net, almo-rales{at}oepa.net, and oepa{at}oepa.net. Julio Castro and Eduard Catú, Programa de Enfermedades Transmitidas por Vectores, Ministerio de Salud y Asistencia Publica, 5a Avenida 11-40, Zona 11, Guatemala, Guatemala, E-mails: pvectores{at}intelnett.com and edcatur{at}yahoo.com. Frank O. Richards, Jr., The Carter Center, One Copenhill, 453 Freedom Parkway, Atlanta, GA 30307, E-mail: fxr1{at}cdc.gov.






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