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Tests and diagnosis
By Mayo Clinic staffTo diagnose Q fever, your doctor will perform one or more blood tests, along with additional tests if chronic Q fever is suspected.
- Platelet count. Performing a platelet count may suggest Q fever, but it can't provide a definite diagnosis.
- Serologic testing. To make a specific diagnosis of Q fever, your doctor will test your blood serum for antibodies to the Coxiella burnetii antigen.
- Echocardiography. If chronic Q fever is suspected, your doctor may do an echocardiogram to check for lesions on your heart valves, the most common sign of endocarditis. If no lesions are found on the echocardiogram, your doctor may want you to return in three or six months for more serologic tests and another echocardiogram.
References
- Q fever fact sheet Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dvrd/qfever/. Accessed May 1, 2009.
- Hartzell JD, et al. Q fever: Epidemiology, diagnosis and treatment. Mayo Clinic Proceedings. 2008;83:574.
- Raoult D. Clinical features, diagnosis, treatment and prevention of Q fever. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed May 1, 2009.
- Raoult D. Q fever endocarditis. http://www.uptodate.com/home/index.html. Accessed May 1, 2009.
- Maurin M, et al. Q fever. American Society for Microbiology Clinical Microbiology Reviews. 1999;12(4):518.
- Tissot-Dupont H. Q fever. Infectious Disease Clinics of North America. 2008;22:505.
- Marrie TJ, et al. Coxiella burnetii (Q fever). In: Mandell GL et al. Principles and Practice of Infectious Diseases. 6th ed. London: Churchill Livingstone; 2005. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/140205849-3/846136203/1259/1538.html#4-u1.0-B0-443-06643-4..50189-6_6250. Accessed May 1, 2009.
- Raoult D. Q Fever. In: Rakel RE. Conn's Current Therapy. 6th ed. Philadelphia: Saunders; 2008. http://www.mdconsult.com/das/book/body/140205849-3/846136203/1621/69.html#4-u1.0-B978-1-4160-4435-2..50036-4_501. Accessed May 1, 2009.
