Most Common Clinical Presentation of Q Fever in a Province in the North of Spain

Q fever is a world-wide zoonosis, produced by Coxiella burnetii, a microorganism belonging to the Riskettsiaceae family. Q fever can appear as a non localized feverish disease, as a feverish syndrome with hepatic impairment or as an atypic pneumonia. The form of presentation varies between different geografic areas, thus, feverish form is more prevalent in Australia, while the hepatic one is prevalent in France and the pneumonic one in Nova Scotia (Canada). In order to know which is the most common presentation pattern of Q fever in our area, we have checked all cases diagnosed between 1 January, 1984 and 31 December, 1996, in the province of Soria, situated in northern Spain.