COMPREHENSIVE ANALYSIS OF SALMONELLA ANTIBODY PREVALENCE IN PATIENTS USING WIDAL TITER AT A TERTIARY CARE INSTITUTION IN NORTHEAST DELHI

Introduction: Enteric fever continues to pose a significant public health challenge in India. The detection of enteric fever through laboratory diagnosis relies predominantly on serological tests. Among these tests, the widal test stands out as a cost-effective, readily accessible, and widely employed method for serologically diagnosing enteric fever. Objective: This study aimed for comprehensive analysis of Salmonella antibody prevalence in patients using widal titer at a tertiary care institution in north-east Delhi. Method: This is a cross-sectional observational study, that employed the widal tube agglutination test to 9,665 blood samples over a period of eighteen months (January 2022 to July 2023) for the serodiagnosis of enteric fever. Results: In a year and a half study, 11% of the population exhibited significant agglutination titre of ≥1:128, indicating exposure to infection. The estimated prevalence of enteric fever by Salmonella Typhi, paratyphi A and B detected by the widal test was 10.98%, 0.54%, and 0.052%, respectively. Notably, two distinct surges in enteric cases were observed during the late winter to early spring and during monsoon. Enteric predominantly affected females (55.7%) compared to males (44.2%). The age group most affected was 11 to 30 years, with a prevalence of 51.9%, followed by young children aged between 1-10 years (30.5%). Conclusion: Enteric fever remains a significant healthcare concern in India, particularly among the younger demographic. The diagnosis of enteric fever still predominantly relies on serological testing, such as the widal test, in developing nations.