Serological evidence of exposure to Rickettsia felis and Rickettsia typhi in Australian veterinarians

Parasites & Vectors

Table 1 Multivariate risk factor analysis of exposure to Rickettsia felis or R. typhi

	Population	Exposed	Coefficient (SE)	t	P	OR (95% CI)
Constant			0.993 (0.291)	3.41	0.001
Age
20–39 years	64	42	0.106 (0.101)	1.051	0.295	1.112 (0.912–1.356)^a
40–59 years	42	24	Reference
60+ years	23	6	-0.285 (0.133)	-2.147	0.034	0.752 (0.579–0.975)
State
SA or WA	12	5	Reference
NSW or ACT	33	16	-0.040 (0.163)	-0.244	0.808	0.961 (0.698–1.323)
QLD	22	10	-0.046 (0.175)	-0.263	0.793	0.955 (0.678–1.346)
VIC or TAS	55	36	0.093 (0.157)	0.591	0.555	1.097 (0.807–1.493)
Recommends flea treatment to clients
No	5	5	Reference
Yes	123	66	-0.493 (0.242)	-2.034	0.044	0.611 (0.38–0.982)

Abbreviations: CI confidence interval, OR odds ratio, SE standard error
^aInterpretation: compared with participants from the reference category (those between the ages of 40–59), after adjusting for the effect of location (state) and whether they recommended flea treatment to clients, participants aged 60+ had a 1.330 (0.752^-1; CI: 1.026–1.727) times lower odds of exposure

ISSN: 1756-3305