PSITTACOSIS-LYMPHOGRANULOMA VENEREUM VIRUS ANTIBODIES IN MAN

Parakeets and pigeons appear to be the most important sources of reported psittacosis (ornithosis) in man.1The prediction of Meyer,2in 1941, that barnyard fowl were a probable reservoir of viruses of the psittacosis group and therefore a potential source of human psittacosis infection, has been borne out in recent years by reports of cases in man traced to ducks,3turkeys,4and chickens.5Human infection from these sources still appears to be relatively rare if judged by the few reports published to date. However, the mildness of clinical symptoms apparent in many reported cases from these sources and the lack of easily available laboratory facilities has, no doubt, contributed greatly to a general lack of concern on the part of practicing physicians for infections with this group of viruses. In 1951, the first case of psittacosis was recorded in the area of Warren, Ill.6